214 NORTH STAFFORDSHIRE COAL FOSSILS. 



Lepidosteus (Gar-pike) is a typical example. The living 

 Ganoids are, in addition to Lepidosteus, Amia, Accipensor 

 (Sturgeon), and three or four others, some of which are 

 found in the North American waters. The first-named has 

 the body encased with bony scales covered with a dense 

 coating of enamel. Another has large scales along the back 

 and sides, as the sturgeon. The extinct Ganoids had their 

 bodies covered with a strong armature of solid bone. The 

 head was protected by plates of great apparent strength (as 

 was the Megalichthys). The jaws were filled with teeth 

 of various sizes. The tail in these ancient fishes is hetero- 

 cercal, or unequally lobed, the inequality being caused by 

 the vertebral column being prolonged into the upper half 

 of the fin, a peculiarity which prevailed amongst all the 

 fishes of the older formations The scales in many of the 

 Ganoids are beautifully sculptured. Some of them are 

 covered with fine wavy stria3 and tuberculated head bones 

 (as Ccelacanthus). Some have scales covered with fine lines 

 arranged in various patterns (as Palaeoniscus and allied 

 genera) ; while in others (as Megalichthys) the external 

 surface of the scales is covered with closely-set minute 

 punctures. 



With a view of assisting those members of the club who 

 may be desirous of studying the fossil fishes of our coal- 

 measures, we shall in the following pages give a brief 

 description of the most prominent features exhibited in each 

 species. This, together with a plate containing figures of 

 the most characteristic specimens, will, it is hoped, be of 

 service to the members and stimulate them to search for 

 such specimens as may be obtained in the various localities 

 in which they reside. 



