First record of fossil fish (Enchodontoidei, Actinopterygii) in the Struganik quarry in Western Serbia

Abstract

This paper presents the first Upper Cretaceous remains of fish in Serbia, discovered near the village of Struganik. This is also the first described find of Mesozoic fish in Serbia. A stone slab with visible contours of an almost complete fish, with a total body length of about 20 cm, was excavated from the Struganik quarry. Most bones are preserved as imprints. The number of vertebrae, the shape and position of the cranial bones, the type of teeth, and the position of the first dorsal fin all indicate that the studied specimen belongs to the genus Enchodus known from several Upper Cretaceous localities in the Tethys domain.

Keywords

• enhodontoidei
• enchodus
• upper cretaceous
• struganik limestone
• western serbia