Carcharias cuspidatus (Agassiz, 1843)

Cicimurri, David J. & Knight, James L., 2009, Late Oligocene sharks and rays from the Chandler Bridge Formation, Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA, Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 54 (4), pp. 627-647 : 631

Carcharias cuspidatus (Agassiz, 1843)

Fig. 4D .

Referred specimens.—BCGM 9051 and 9052.

Comments.—BCGM 9051 is a symphyseal tooth nearly identical in morphology to symphyseal teeth of Recent Carcharias taurus Rafinesque, 1810 that we examined (SC.86.62.2). Although teeth of Megachasma pelagios Taylor, Compagno, and Stuhsaker, 1983 are superficially similar to our symphyseal tooth (see Herman et al. 1993), the root of our specimen is more laterally compressed and the lingual boss not as well developed. BCGM 9052 is a lower lateral tooth, the enameloid of which is completely smooth on both crown faces, and the lateral cusplets are rather small. These characteristics lead us to assign the specimen to C. cuspidatus (also Génault 1993; Baut and Génault 1999; Reinecke et al. 2001, 2005; Haye et al. 2008).

Stratigraphic and geographic range.—Oligo−Miocene, Europe, Russia, USA.

Figures

Fig. 4. Lamniform sharks from Summerville, upper Chattian. A, B. Alopias cf. A. vulpinus (Bonnaterre, 1788). A. BCGM 9047, anterior tooth, labial view. B. BCGM 9048, lateral tooth, labial view. C. Carcharias sp., BCGM 9054, labial view. D. Carcharias cuspidatus (Agassiz, 1843), BCGM 9052, lower lateral tooth, labial view. E. Carcharocles sp., BCGM 9055, labial view.