Albula eppsi

Albula eppsi

Frost in White, 1931

Common name Bonefish
Fossil group Bony Fish
Order Albuliformes
Family Albulidae
Genus Albula
Taxonomic status Accepted
Geological age Thanetian and Ypresian

Summary

Albula eppsi was a Palaeogene bonefish relative known from late Palaeocene and Eocene marine deposits. Comparison with living bonefishes suggests an active coastal fish that foraged over shallow seafloors, although this ecology is inferred rather than directly demonstrated. Its robust crushing dentition is consistent with feeding on hard or resistant benthic prey.

The species is known chiefly from small crushing teeth and tooth-bearing dental elements. These durable parts preserve its feeding apparatus far more readily than the rest of the skeleton, so they provide most of what is currently known about the animal.

Quick Identification

Look for: small low-crowned crushing teeth with a circular occlusal outline, a nearly flat to gently convex top, thin smooth enameloid and a flat base with a centrally placed circular pulp cavity. Teeth with straight, nearly parallel or biconvex sides are a better fit than the larger, taper-sided teeth referred to Albula oweni; heavily worn isolated teeth remain difficult.

Diagnostic Features

  • Crown is very low and circular to near-circular in occlusal outline.
  • Unworn occlusal surface is nearly flat to weakly convex.
  • Enameloid is thin and smooth and may not extend fully to the crown base.
  • Lateral sides are straight or near-parallel to biconvex rather than strongly tapering.
  • Basal surface is flat with a centrally placed circular pulp cavity.

Fossil Details

Typical size
Diagnostic isolated teeth are generally under 5 mm in diameter; tooth size alone is not sufficient for identification.
Fossil material
Tooth, Tooth Plate
Preservation
Small crushing teeth commonly lose part or all of the thin enameloid cap through wear, exposing dentine and flattening or obliquely faceting the occlusal surface. Chipping of the base can remove the central pulp-cavity character, so very worn isolated teeth should not be forced to species.

Similar Species

Recorded Fossil Sites

Reculver Sand Member

Thanet Formation
Confirmed
Reculver

References

  • Ebersole, J.A.; Cicimurri, D.J.; Stringer, G.L. (2019). Taxonomy and biostratigraphy of the elasmobranchs and bony fishes (Chondrichthyes and Osteichthyes) of the lower-to-middle Eocene (Ypresian to Bartonian) Claiborne Group in Alabama, USA, including an analysis of otoliths. European Journal of Taxonomy, 585, 1–274 View reference
  • Ward, D.J. (1978). The Lower London Tertiary (Palaeocene) succession of Herne Bay, Kent. Report of the Institute of Geological Sciences. Institute of Geological Sciences View reference
  • White, E.I. (1931). The vertebrate faunas of the English Eocene. I. From the Thanet Sands to the Basement Bed of the London Clay. 121 pp.. British Museum (Natural History), London View reference
Last Reviewed
21 August 2026 Reviewed by Sam Harris