Peipiaosteus pani Liu and Zhou, 1965

Taxonomy

Sturgeon

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopteri Cope 1871
Order: Acipenseriformes
Family: Acipenseridae
Genus: Peipiaosteus
Species: Peipiaosteus pani
Author Citation Liu & Zhou, 1965

Geological Time Scale

Eon: Phanerozoic
Era: Mesozoic
Period: Cretaceous
Sub Period: None
Epoch: Early
International Age: Aptian

Stratigraphy

Jiufotang Formation

Provenance

Acquired by: Purchase/Trade

Location

Pani Lake
Beipiao
Liaoning
China

• beipiao
• cretaceous
• liaoning
• peipiaosteus
• sturgeon
• tff-oilshale-ch846

Comments

The order of Acipenseriformes (Sturgeon-like fishes) both includes sturgeons (Acipenseridae) and paddlefish (Polyodontidae).

At least three Sturgeon-like fishes (Acipenseriformes) can be found in the Jiufotang Formation (Jehol Group) and in the Yixian Formation in western Liaoning and northern Hebei Province China: Peipiaosteus pani Liu and Zhou, 1965, Protopsephurus liui Lu, 1994 and Yanosteus longidorsalis Jin, Tian, Yang & Deng, 1995. The Jiufotang Formation - where this Peipiaosteus comes from - is dated to about 120.3+/-0.7 million years ago, which was during the Aptian age of the Cretaceous; the Yixian Formation - where P. liui and Y. longidorsalis can be found - is dated slightly older, around 125-121 million years ago (Barremian-early Aptian).
 

Peipiaosteus pani, Liu and Zhou 1965, a relative of nowadays sturgeons, is from the Jiufotang Formation, Pani Lake, Liaoning. This sturgeon is characterized by a long fusiform trunk and a short dorsal fin. The origin of the dorsal fin is a little before that of the anal fin. The normal size of these specimens normally is around 15 to 30 cm – but I’ve seen a couple of fish exceeding 60cm.

Line drawing from Grande et al. 2002, p. 218:

References:
Liu, H. & Zhou J. (1965): A new Sturgeon from the Upper Jurassic of Liaoning, North China. Vertebrata PalAsiatica Vol. 9, No. 3, 1965, p. 237 ff.
Zhou, Z.(1992) Review on Peipiaosteus based on new materials of P. pani. Vertebrata PalAsiatica Vol 30, No. 2, pp 85-101. 
Grande, L., Jin, F., Yabumoto, Y. & Bemis, W. E. (2002) Protopsephurus liui, a well-preserved primitive paddlefish (Acipenseriformes: Polyodontidae) from the Lower Cretaceous of China, Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 22:2, 209-237, DOI: 10.1671/0272-4634(2002)022[0209:PLAWPP]2.0.CO;2.