Shark / ray
Onchopristis numida
Sawfish rostral tooth
Onchopristis numida is the giant Cretaceous sawfish of the Kem Kem rivers whose barbed rostral 'teeth' (actually modified scales) with one or more backward-pointing hooks are among the most abundant Kem Kem fossils. Rostral denticles up to 8 cm are cheap and distinctive; the hooks are frequently reglued or resin-restored. Complete rostra are museum pieces.
| Phylum | Chordata |
|---|---|
| Class | Chondrichthyes |
| Order | Sclerorhynchiformes |
| Family | Sclerorhynchidae |
| Group | Shark / ray |
| Rank (PBDB) | genus· Paleobiology Database |
| Author | Stromer 1917· Paleobiology Database |
| Classification (PBDB) | Chordata › Chondrichthyes › Sclerorhynchiformes › Sclerorhynchidae· Paleobiology Database |
| Range (PBDB) | 126–66 Ma· Paleobiology Database |
| PBDB occurrences | 58· Paleobiology Database |
Elsewhere
Cite this article
Stratum Strata. "Onchopristis numida" (Taxon). Stratum Strata pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21. https://stratum.black/strata/taxa/onchopristis-numida. Accessed 2026-09-21.
@misc{stratum-onchopristis-numida,
title = {Onchopristis numida},
author = {{Stratum Strata}},
howpublished = {\url{https://stratum.black/strata/taxa/onchopristis-numida}},
year = {2026},
note = {Taxon article, Stratum Strata pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21; sources: stratum, pbdb, commons. Accessed 2026-09-21.}
} Citations carry the pack version and the article's as-of date so they resolve to the same text later. The facts themselves belong to the sources listed below; cite those for the science.