CMNH 5768, Dunkleosteus terrelli

3D Model

CMNH 5768, Dunkleosteus terrelli (Newberry, 1873)

Age: Late Devonian (Famennian) Rock unit: Cleveland Shale Member, Ohio Formation

Locality: Cuyahoga Co., OH

Collectors: Peter A. Bungart Date Collected: Jun, 1928

358 million years ago, a shallow sea teeming with marine life covered Northeast Ohio. Dunkleosteus terrelli, the largest predator and one of the fiercest creatures alive in the Devonian “Age of Fishes,” ruled the waters. Up to 20 feet in length and weighing more than 1 ton, this fish was capable of chopping prehistoric sharks into chum! Dunkleosteus had a massive skull made of thick, bony plates, and 2 sets of fang-like protrusions near the front of powerful, self-sharpening jawbones. Casts of this specimen are on display across the world.

On November 18, 2020, the Ohio General Assembly passed a bill declaring Dunkleosteus terrelli the state fossil fish.

Scanner: Artec Leo

Image by Hailey Majewski, CMNH