Aulopopsis egertoni

Aulopopsis egertoni

Casier, 1966

Common name Grinner / lizardfish
Fossil group Bony Fish
Order Aulopiformes
Family incertae sedis
Genus Aulopopsis
Taxonomic status Accepted
Geological age Ypresian

Summary

Aulopopsis egertoni was a predatory aulopiform in the early Eocene London Clay sea. Its strong lower-jaw teeth indicate a grasping dentition suited to seizing fishes or other mobile prey, while radiating sculpture across the skull roof gives the head a strongly textured appearance. The preserved orbital region is comparatively lightly ossified rather than dominated by a heavy bony eye ring.

The species is represented mainly by three-dimensional cranial fossils. This preservation provides good information on skull architecture and feeding anatomy while leaving the full body form less certain. Its robust dentition and elongate predatory head support an active carnivorous lifestyle, with exact prey inferred from anatomy rather than directly preserved.

Quick Identification

Look for: an aulopiform skull with radiating cranial-roof striations and robust lower-jaw teeth but without the conspicuous ossified sclerotic ring seen in some other London Clay aulopiform skulls.

Diagnostic Features

  • Cranial roof carries clear radiating striations around and behind the orbital region.
  • Lower jaw bears robust pointed teeth suited to grasping rather than crushing.
  • Sclerotic ossicles are not prominently developed in the known skull material.
  • Frontal bones form a comparatively smooth, gently arched roof between the radiating striae.
  • Jaw margin is elongate and supports a continuous series of strong teeth.

Fossil Details

Preservation
London Clay fish skulls are commonly incomplete, compressed, pyritised or enclosed in concretions. Thin cranial margins and projecting processes are easily lost, and separated bones can be difficult to orient; species-level identification is strongest when several adjoining diagnostic bones are preserved together.

Recorded Fossil Sites

No fossil-site occurrences have yet been recorded for this species.

References

  • Casier, E. (1966). Faune ichthyologique du London Clay. 496 pp.. Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History), London View reference
  • Friedman, M.; Beckett, H. T.; Close, R. A.; Johanson, Z. (2016). The English Chalk and London Clay: two remarkable British bony fish Lagerstätten. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 430(1), 165–200. Geological Society of London, London View reference
Last Reviewed
20 August 2026 Reviewed by Sam Harris