Temporal range: Cisuralian to Guadalupian (Artinskian to Roadian), 290–270 Ma
PreꞒ
Ꞓ
O
S
D
C
P
T
J
K
Pg
N
FHPR L2003-2, a Helicoprion davisii tooth-whorl from the Phosphoria Formation of Idaho, Utah Field House of Natural History
Scientific classification
Domain:
Eukaryota
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Chondrichthyes
Subclass:
Holocephali
Order:
†Eugeneodontida
Family:
†Helicoprionidae
Genus:
†Helicoprion Karpinsky, 1899
Type species
Helicoprion bessonowi
Karpinsky, 1899
Other species
H. davisii (Woodward, 1886), originally Edestus davisii
H. ergassaminon Bendix-Almgreen, 1966
Synonyms
Synonyms of H. davisii
H. ferrieri (Hay, 1907), originally Lissoprion ferrieri
H. jingmenense Chen, Cheng, & Yin, 2007
H. sierrensis Wheeler, 1939
Synonyms of H. bessonowi
H. nevadensis Wheeler, 1939
Indeterminate species
H. karpinskii Obruchev, 1953
H. mexicanus Mullerried, 1945
H. svalis Siedlecki, 1970
H.?clerci Karpinsky, 1916
Helicoprion is an extinct genus of shark-like[1] eugeneodont fish. Almost all fossil specimens are of spirally arranged clusters of the individuals' teeth, called "tooth whorls", which in life were embedded in the lower jaw. As with most extinct cartilaginous fish, the skeleton is mostly unknown. Fossils of Helicoprion are known from a 20 million year timespan during the Permian period from the Artinskian stage of the Cisuralian (Early Permian) to the Roadian stage of the Guadalupian (Middle Permian).[2] The closest living relatives of Helicoprion (and other eugeneodonts) are the chimaeras, though their relationship is very distant.[3] The unusual tooth arrangement is thought to have been an adaption for feeding on soft bodied prey, and may have functioned as a deshelling mechanism for hard bodied cephalopods such as nautiloids and ammonoids. In 2013, systematic revision of Helicoprion via morphometric analysis of the tooth whorls found only H. davisii, H. bessonowi and H. ergassaminon to be valid, with some of the larger tooth whorls being outliers.[2]
Fossils of Helicoprion have been found worldwide, as the genus is known from Russia, Western Australia, China, Kazakhstan, Japan, Laos, Norway, Canada, Mexico, and the United States (Idaho, Nevada, Wyoming, Texas, Utah, and California). More than 50% of the fossils referred to Helicoprion are H. davisii specimens from the Phosphoria Formation of Idaho. An additional 25% of fossils are found in the Ural Mountains of Russia, belonging to the species H. bessonowi.[2]
^Viegas, Jennifer (February 27, 2013). "Ancient shark relative had buzzsaw mouth". science.nbcnews.com.
^ abcCite error: The named reference pruitt was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Tapanila, L.; Pruitt, J.; Pradel, A.; Wilga, C.D.; Ramsay, J.B.; Schlader, R.; Didier, D.A. (2013). "Jaws for a spiral-tooth whorl: CT images reveal novel adaptation and phylogeny in fossil Helicoprion". Biology Letters. 9 (2): 20130057. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2013.0057. PMC 3639784. PMID 23445952.
Helicoprion is an extinct genus of shark-like eugeneodont fish. Almost all fossil specimens are of spirally arranged clusters of the individuals' teeth...
and Edestidae ("those which devour"), the former containing the genera Helicoprion, Sarcoprion, and Parahelicoprion, and the latter containing the genera...
The genus name, from "nearly coiled saw" in Greek, directly refers to Helicoprion, a related holocephalid that shares similar traits to it, including the...
older than Helicoprion suggests, but does not prove, that it is a direct ancestor of Helicoprion. Campyloprion teeth resemble those of Helicoprion, but the...
genus and species, some possessing complete spirals (such as those of Helicoprion), others possessing halved spirals (seen in Parahelicoprion), and some...
S2CID 86174861. Martin 2008. Lebedev, O.A. (2009). "A new specimen of Helicoprion Karpinsky, 1899 from Kazakhstanian Cisurals and a new reconstruction...
similarities to another eugeneodont, Helicoprion, the tooth row of Toxoprion does not coil back on itself, as seen in Helicoprion, but instead forms a downward...
diverse than modern times as the climate warmed. Unusual sharks such as Helicoprion continued in this series. Early Permian terrestrial faunas were dominated...
Permian of Greenland. Similar to other eugeneodontids such as Edestus and Helicoprion, it was best known for its extremely bizarre tooth morphology compared...
have ever existed up to that point. Like its other relatives, such as Helicoprion, and unlike modern sharks, the species of Edestus grew teeth in curved...
limestone formation contains marine gastropods, brachiopods and ammonites. Helicoprion davisii List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Texas Paleontology...
reach body lengths of 6.7 m (22 ft). Permian Permian (298–252 Ma): HelicoprionHelicoprion is arguably the most iconic genus of the extinct Eugeneodontida...
O S D C P T J K Pg N Devonian–Recent Chimaera monstrosa, a rat fish †Helicoprion davisii, a eugeneodontid Scientific classification Domain: Eukaryota...
by the presence of tooth whorls. They include iconic genera, such as Helicoprion ("buzz-saw shark"), Ornithoprion, Edestus or Fadenia. Caseodus is one...
length. The largest known eugeneodont is an as-yet unnamed species of Helicoprion discovered in Idaho. The specimens suggest an animal that possibly exceeded...
scales and bones. Most "tooth whorls" of the enigmatic cartilaginous fish Helicoprion are known from the formation, including the only known specimen with...
including fusulinids, corals, and crinoids. Other fossils include the shark Helicoprion, the ammonoids Pseudogastrioceras and Perrinites hilli, the nautiloid...
by the presence of tooth whorls. They include iconic genera, such as Helicoprion (buzz-saw shark), Ornithoprion, Edestus or Caseodus. Fadenia is one of...
the new genus Stethacanthus. 1899 Karpinsky described the new genus Helicoprion. Jeram described the new genus Pulmonoscorpius. History of science portal...
taxa at the level of genus or species. Reassessment of the anatomy of Helicoprion and a study on the phylogenetic relationships of this taxon is published...
Stereosternum with Mesosaurus. 1899 Karpinsky described the new genus Helicoprion. 1904 Broili described the new genus Seymouria. 1911 Broom described...
Global Information
