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Mesomyzon

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Extinct genus of lampreys

Mesomyzon
Temporal range: Early Cretaceous Barremian–Aptian PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Fossil specimen of M. mengae
Life reconstruction of Mesomyzon mengae
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Hyperoartia
Order: Petromyzontiformes
Genus: Mesomyzon
Chang, Zhang & Miao 2006
Type species
Mesomyzon mengae
Chang, Zhang & Miao 2006

Mesomyzon mengae is an extinct lamprey from freshwater strata of the Early Cretaceous-aged Yixian Formation, in China.

The animal's exquisitely preserved fossils show a creature very similar to modern-day lampreys, having a well-developed sucking oral disk, a branchial basket, at least seven pairs of gill pouches and corresponding gill arches, impressions of gill filaments, and at least 80 myomeres of its musculature. It had the same three phase life cycle found in modern lampreys.

A phylogenetic analysis conducted in 2018 shows that Mesomyzon is the fossil lamprey most closely related to modern taxa, though it is not closely related to any modern group. On the other hand, Brownstein & Near (2022) found it to be a member of the lamprey crown group, most closely related to Petromyzontidae. However, a 2023 study found it again to be a derived stem lamprey, with the earlier Yanliaomyzon from the same region found to be more closely related to modern lampreys. This study also suggested Mesomyzon to be a blood feeder.

References

  1. ^ Chang, M. M.; Zhang, J.; Miao, D. (2006). "A lamprey from the Cretaceous Jehol biota of China". Nature. 441 (7096): 972–974. Bibcode:2006Natur.441..972C. doi:10.1038/nature04730. PMID 16791193. S2CID 4427676.
  2. ^ Wu, Feixiang; Janvier, Philippe; Zhang, Chi (2023-10-31). "The rise of predation in Jurassic lampreys". Nature Communications. 14 (1): 6652. doi:10.1038/s41467-023-42251-0. ISSN 2041-1723. PMC 10618186.
  3. Miyashita, Tetsuto; Coates, Michael I.; Farrar, Robert; Larson, Peter; Manning, Phillip L.; Wogelius, Roy A.; Edwards, Nicholas P.; Anné, Jennifer; Bergmann, Uwe; Palmer, A. Richard; Currie, Philip J. (2019-02-05). "Hagfish from the Cretaceous Tethys Sea and a reconciliation of the morphological–molecular conflict in early vertebrate phylogeny". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 116 (6): 2146–2151. Bibcode:2019PNAS..116.2146M. doi:10.1073/pnas.1814794116. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 6369785. PMID 30670644.
  4. Brownstein, C. D.; Near, T. J. (2022). "Phylogenetics and the Cenozoic radiation of lampreys". Current Biology. 33 (2): 397–404.e3. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2022.12.018. PMID 36586410. S2CID 255278945.
Taxon identifiers
Mesomyzon


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