Introduction
Examination of the specimens of tetraodontiform and
possibly related fishes in the collections of the Paleontological
Institute in Moscow of the Russian Academy of Sciences has
revealed new and unusual members of several families. Among
them is a single specimen of a balistoid with specializations
that include a long, anteriorly directed median spine on the
snout, another spine directed posteriorly on each side of the
body, and much larger teeth in the lower jaw than in the upper
jaw. It has a covering of enlarged ostraciid-like scale plates
forming a partial carapace around the body, three dorsal spines
placed over the rear of the skull like balistids but without a
locking mechanism, and a rudimentary pelvic fin at the end of
the pelvis like balistids but without encasing scales. The
uniqueness of this heavily armored species was recognized by
P.G. Daniltshenko, the pioneering chronicler of the fossil fish
fauna of Russia and adjacent regions, and a sketch he made of
it accompanies the specimen in the collection. The specimen
has remained undescribed, apparently because of uncertainty
about its familial or even ordinal placement