Bawitius

Bawitius is an extinct genus of giant polypterid from the Upper Cretaceous (lower Cenomanian) Bahariya Formation of Egypt.[1] The genus etymology comes from Bawiti, the principal settlement of the Bahariya Oasis in Egypt.[1] It is known from several ectopterygoid bones and some sparse scales.[1]

Bawitius
Temporal range: Late Cretaceous, Cenomanian
Restoration of Bawitius
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Polypteriformes
Family: Polypteridae
Genus: †Bawitius
Grandstaff et al. 2012
Species:
†B. bartheli
Binomial name
†Bawitius bartheli
(Schaal, 1984)

Morphology

Compared to modern polypterids, Bawitius was enormous: the Bawitius holotype ectopterygoid is five times larger than the one of Polypterus and the scales are unusually large, too: these remains suggest the living animal may have been up to 300 centimeters (9.8 feet) in length.[1]

The morphology of Bawitius is different enough to justify its assignment to a new genus. Unique features of the genus are, for example, an anterioposteriorly elongated contact between the lateral process and the maxilla, a high, narrow ectopterygoid and the presence of 14 teeth in the main tooth row.[1]

The scales are different, too, apart from size, from those of modern polypterids: they feature a discontinuous ganoine layer, a rectilinear shape, and small articular processes.[1]

Ecological relevance

The existence of drastically different polypterids such as Bawitius and Serenoichthys corroborates the existence of a variety of polypterid fishes in the ecosystems of Late Cretaceous of North Africa.[1]

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References
  1. Grandstaff, B. S; Smith, J. B.; Lamanna, M. C.; Lacovara, K. J.; Abdel-Ghani, M. S. (2012). "Bawitius, gen. nov., a giant polypterid (Osteichthyes, Actinopterygii) from the Upper Cretaceous Bahariya Formation of Egypt". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 32 (1): 17–26. doi:10.1080/02724634.2012.626823.
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