Dartmuthia
Encyclopedia
Dartmuthia is an extinct genus of primitive jawless fish
that lived in the Silurian
period in what is now Estonia
.
To date only the creature's armored head shield (a typical trait for osteostracids) has been found. Since the mouth is positioned on the underside of the head Dartmuthia is presumed to have dwelled on the ocean floor, sucking its food into its mouth.
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
that lived in the Silurian
Silurian
The Silurian is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Ordovician Period, about 443.7 ± 1.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Devonian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya . As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period's start and end are well identified, but the...
period in what is now Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
.
To date only the creature's armored head shield (a typical trait for osteostracids) has been found. Since the mouth is positioned on the underside of the head Dartmuthia is presumed to have dwelled on the ocean floor, sucking its food into its mouth.