Strophodus
genus of hybodonts
Strophodus is an extinct genus of durophagous hybodont known from the Triassic to Cretaceous. It was formerly confused with Asteracanthus.
Taxonomy
It has long been confused with Asteracanthus due to the fin spines of the latter being found associated with the teeth of Strophodus. However, both genera can now be reliably be distinguished base on the morphology of both the fin spines and teeth.
Description
Species of Strophodus had heavily rounded, durophagous crushing teeth, contrasting strongly with those of Asteracanthus, which are much more similar to those of Hybodus. Species of Strophodus have been estimated to reach up to 3 metres (9.8 ft) in length, making them some of the largest hybodonts. Like Asteracanthus, but unlike other hybodonts, the fin spines of Strophodus are covered in tubercles rather than being ribbed.
Ecology
Strophodus has been interpreted as a bottom-dwelling animal that fed on hard-shelled invertebrates, though isotopic evidence has suggested that it may have been pelagic. It may also have been euryhaline.
Species
Species of Strophodus:
S. reticulatus (Agassiz, 1838) Middle-Late Jurassic (Bathonian–Tithonian) England, France, Germany, Hungary and Switzerland.
The public source identifies “Strophodus” as genus of hybodonts. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Strophodus, genus and hybodonts.
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Stable identifiers, scientific names and standards terminology offer the best bridge between this overview and specialist evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q41220294. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1838.
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This entry incorporates text from “Strophodus” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.