asterolepidae
|as-ter-o-le-pi-dae|
/ˌæstərəˈlɛpɪdiː/
Devonian armored-fish family
Etymology
'Asterolepidae' originates from New Latin, formed from the genus name 'Asterolepis' plus the family suffix '-idae', where '-idae' meant 'family'.
'Asterolepis' comes from Greek elements 'aster' meaning 'star' and 'lepis' meaning 'scale'; the genus name was later extended with the family-forming suffix '-idae' to create 'Asterolepidae'.
Initially the components described the genus as 'star-scaled' (referring to scale appearance); over time the composite name came to denote the taxonomic family of related placoderm fishes.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a family of extinct armored fishes (placoderms) known from fossil deposits, primarily of Devonian age.
Fossils attributed to Asterolepidae have been found in Middle Devonian strata in several regions.
Last updated: 2025/11/06 02:56