Bandringa rayi
Carboniferous elasmobranch
Bandringa is a type of freshwater shark that lived during the Carboniferous Period, around
309 million years ago. It had a long spoonlike rostrum, or snout, which it probably used to
dig around in the mud for food. Like modern paddlefish, the rostrum might have been able to sense the electric field produced by prey animals.
Bandringa fossils are found in Illinois, around the famous Mazon Creek fossil beds. Adult
Bandringa sharks lived in rivers and swamps, but they swam downstream to the ocean in
order to lay their eggs. This is the oldest known evidence of animal migration!
Length: 16 inches