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<p>The phosphate basins of North Africa have yielded a vertebrate assemblage ranging almost continuously from the Maastrichtian to Lutetian, documenting the faunal renewals associated with the Cretaceous-Palaeogene and Palaeocene–Eocene crises. Among actinopterygians, a major shift is observed between the late Mesozoic and early Cenozoic, from an assemblage mostly formed of aulopiforms to an ichthyofauna rich in acanthomorphs. One of the largest acanthomorphs of the phosphate basins is <i>Phosphichthys thomasi</i>, described in 1952 from Ypresian remains of the Gafsa-Métlaoui Basin, in Tunisia. Initially referred to the Serranidae, a family then much broader than its current definition, its systematic position is herein questioned by the reevaluation of the type material and the description of a new and almost complete neurocranium from the Oulad Abdoun Basin, in Morocco. The presence of a spina occipitalis and distinct exoccipital facets on the first centrum confirms that <i>Phosphichthys</i> is an acanthomorph, but it does not show any synapomorphy of Serranidae, Latidae or Centropomidae. The overall similarity with percomorphs, especially in the general outline of the skull roof, is non informative as it rests on plesiomorphic or highly homoplastic traits. It is also unrelated to other large-sized <i>Lates</i>-like fossil genera such as <i>Semlikiichthys</i> and <i>Weilerichthys</i>.</p>

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Anatomical and systematic reevaluation of Phosphichthys thomasi, a large Early Eocene acanthomorph (Teleostei) from the phosphate basins of North Africa

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年12月10日

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  • Bouziane Khalloufi,
  • Khadija El Houssaini Darif,
  • Fatima Khaldoune,
  • Elbatoul M’hamdi,
  • Nour-Eddine Jalil

摘要

The phosphate basins of North Africa have yielded a vertebrate assemblage ranging almost continuously from the Maastrichtian to Lutetian, documenting the faunal renewals associated with the Cretaceous-Palaeogene and Palaeocene–Eocene crises. Among actinopterygians, a major shift is observed between the late Mesozoic and early Cenozoic, from an assemblage mostly formed of aulopiforms to an ichthyofauna rich in acanthomorphs. One of the largest acanthomorphs of the phosphate basins is Phosphichthys thomasi, described in 1952 from Ypresian remains of the Gafsa-Métlaoui Basin, in Tunisia. Initially referred to the Serranidae, a family then much broader than its current definition, its systematic position is herein questioned by the reevaluation of the type material and the description of a new and almost complete neurocranium from the Oulad Abdoun Basin, in Morocco. The presence of a spina occipitalis and distinct exoccipital facets on the first centrum confirms that Phosphichthys is an acanthomorph, but it does not show any synapomorphy of Serranidae, Latidae or Centropomidae. The overall similarity with percomorphs, especially in the general outline of the skull roof, is non informative as it rests on plesiomorphic or highly homoplastic traits. It is also unrelated to other large-sized Lates-like fossil genera such as Semlikiichthys and Weilerichthys.