Listracanthus Newberry and Worthen, 1870

Mutter, Raoul J. & Neuman, Andrew G., 2006, An enigmatic chondrichthyan with Paleozoic affinities from the Lower Triassic of western Canada, Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 51 (2), pp. 271-282 : 274

Genus Listracanthus Newberry and Worthen, 1870 Type species: Listracanthus hystrix Newberry and Worthen, 1870 . Type locality and age: Coal Measures, Vermilion County, Illinois, USA; Upper Carboniferous.

Remarks.—This enigmatic chondrichthyan was probably large−sized and possibly anguilliform in body shape, covered with small and large denticles, the latter ones being restricted to specific body parts. The new species of Listracanthus described here resembles Listracanthus sp. from Nottinghamshire, England ( Edwards and Stubblefield 1948), L. woltersi Schmidt, 1949 from Nordrhein−Westfalen, Germany and Listracanthus sp. from the Little Osaga shales, New Mexico, USA ( Zidek 1992). The denticle type I, however, shows morphological differences that clearly justify erection of a new species (see description below).