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Issue: Vol. 5642 No. 6: 4 Jun. 2025
Type: Article
Published: 2025-06-04
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5642.6.4
Page range: 562-572
Abstract views: 160
PDF downloaded: 5

A new genus and species of damselfish (Pomacentridae) from the Eocene of Bolca, Northern Italy, with notes on the evolution of predator-prey interactions in coral reef fishes

Research Hub for Coral Reef Ecosystem Functions; College of Science and Engineering; James Cook University; Townsville; Queensland 4811; Australia
Borisyak Paleontological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Moscow; 117647 Russia
Museo Civico di Storia Naturale; Verona; Italy
Pisces Morphology colouration fin height predation avoidance trophic interactions

Abstract

A new genus and species of damselfish †Chiarachromis salazzarii gen. et sp. nov. (Pomacentridae) from the Eocene (49 Ma) Pesciara deposits of the Bolca locality, Italy, is described. †Chiarachromis gen. nov. is characterized by a unique combination of vertebral (11+14=25) and unpaired fin-ray counts (D X, 11; A II, 7; C 7, I,7-6,I, 6), long pelvic fins, and the possession of three supraneurals. With exceptional preservation of the fin shape and the body form, this damselfish raises questions about the role of body shape, especially fin height, in the early evolution of reef fishes, and offers new insights into the rapid development of modern, predator-prey interactions in the early evolution of reef fishes.

 

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How to Cite

Bellwood, D.R., Bannikov, A.F. & Zorzin, R. (2025) A new genus and species of damselfish (Pomacentridae) from the Eocene of Bolca, Northern Italy, with notes on the evolution of predator-prey interactions in coral reef fishes. Zootaxa, 5642 (6), 562–572. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5642.6.4