Size of the largest specimen of Titanichthys compared to a 1.8 meter tall human.
Titanichthys is a titanichthyid arthrodire placoderm fish from the Late Devonian of the United States of America, Poland, and Morocco. It was named in 1885 by John Strong Newberry. It was the biggest placoderm to exist, surpassing even the Dunkleosteus.
Physiology[]
Titanichthys had a build very similar to generic placoderms (a modern-looking fish with an armored head, toothless jaws, and an upward-facing tail). However, it had a few major differences; for example, its pectoral fins were much larger than those of Dunkleosteus, and instead of the sharp bony plates that most arthrodire placoderms had, it had rather blunt ones. Its body would have been covered in scaly skin, with bony plates protecting its head.
Diet[]
Titanichthys was a predator, feeding on small fish and small invertebrates. Since it did not have the sharp bony mouth plates of most arthrodire placoderms, it relied on its huge mouth to engulf tiny prey whole.
Ecology[]
Titanichthys shared most of its physical features with Dunkleosteus, as both were gigantic fish with big heads and huge mouths. However, Titanichthys's aforementioned blunt mouthparts had disqualified it from apex predator status (as opposed to Dunkleosteus). Instead, Titanichthys would have been a whale-like filter feeder, sucking in small fish and plankton with its big mouth. This lifestyle would make it one of the first filter-feeding fish.