CONTENTS ONE SIX From Fish to Tetrapods 4 Modern Orders of Bony Fish 60 TWO Hagfish and Lampreys 14 SEVEN Early Teleost Groups 70 THREE Sharks Skates and Rays 26 EIGHT The Percomorph Clade 80 FOUR Lobe Finned Fish NINE and Tetrapods 36 Fish Evolution Today 90 FIVE The First Bony Fish 50 Essential Facts 100 Glossary 102 Additional Resources 104 Source Notes 106 Index 110 About the Author 112
CHAPTER ONE From Fish to Tetrapods Metaspriggina walcotti was an unimpressive looking fish except for its large bulging eyes It had no obvious fins and looked more wormlike than fishlike It measured only 2.4 inches 6 cm long so its life in the ancient oceans was hazardous 1 It shared the ocean with gigantic predators such as Anomalocaris a 6 foot 1.8 m insect like creature with sharp teeth The Burgess Shale in British Columbia contains the best record of animal fossils from the Cambrian period 2 But Metaspriggina was a fast swimmer and its seven pairs of gills provided plenty of oxygen to keep its energy high It also boasted an exciting new evolutionary development It had a notochorda flexible rod extending the length of its body that provided support and a place for its strong bands of muscle to attach That is the
