Pterygotus

genus

Sensitive Classification

Fossils are sensitive in nature and should not be collected unless it is done legally and responsibly. Vertebrate fossils are illegal to collect on public lands.

On the Web

On Wikipedia

Pterygotus is a genus of giant predatory eurypterid, a group of extinct aquatic arthropods. Fossils of Pterygotus have been discovered in deposits ranging in age from Late Silurian to Late Devonian, and have been referred to several different species. Fossils have been recovered from four continents; Australia, Europe, North America and South America, which indicates that Pterygotus might have had a nearly cosmopolitan (worldwide) distribution. The type species, P. anglicus, was described by Swiss naturalist Louis Agassiz in 1839. Agassiz mistakenly believed the remains were of a giant fish, with the name Pterygotus translating to "winged fish". He would only realize the mistake five years later in 1844. Pterygotus was among the largest eurypterids. Isolated fossil remains of a large…