| Myledaphus
Temporal range: Turonian-Maastrichtian (possible Paleogene occurrences)
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| Myledaphus bipartitus | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Superorder: | Batoidea |
| Order: | Rhinopristiformes |
| Family: | Rhinobatidae |
| Genus: | †Myledaphus Cope, 1876[1] |
| Type species | |
| †Myledaphus bipartitus Cope, 1876 | |
| Other species | |
Myledaphus is an extinct genusofguitarfish. It currently contains four valid species found in North America (M. bipartitus, M. pustulosus), South America (M. araucanus), and Central Asia (M. tritus).[4] It is confirmed to have lived during the Late Cretaceous, with possible occurrences in the Paleocene and early Eocene.[3][5] While the genus is mostly known from teeth, two partial skeletons of M. bipartitus have been found in the Dinosaur Park FormationofAlberta.[6]
Myledaphus remains have been found both in marine and fluvial (freshwater) deposits, suggesting it could tolerate a range of salinity.[7] In the Hell Creek Formation, composed predominantly of floodplain and riverine deposits, Myledaphus teeth are very common, accounting for a significant fraction of vertebrate remains found in microsites.[7]
Myledaphus has a durophagus dentition with blunt, polygonal-shaped (hexagonal to rhombic) teeth tessellated into a pavement suited for crushing and grinding hard-bodied prey. Many of their teeth show wear consistent with feeding on mollusks, which were common in the rivers of North America during the Late Cretaceous.[7]
| Myledaphus |
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