Devonian Fish Fossil Remains from the Canning Basin, Western Australia

Late Devonian (likely Famennian) fragmentary fish fossils from the Knobby Sandstone formation in the eastern Canning Basin, Western Australia. The remains, described by Geoscience Australia, include a new species of Bothriolepis, other antiarch placoderms, and rhipidistian teeth and scales, all preserved as moulds in coarse sandstone. The associated plant Leptophloeum australe and fragmentary preservation suggest a high-energy depositional environment.

Use Cases

• Taxonomic description and comparison of Devonian antiarch placoderms based on described dermal plates and ornamentation.
• Biostratigraphic correlation of Late Devonian terrestrial sequences based on the described fossil assemblage.
• Reconstruction of paleoenvironments based on the described high-energy depositional setting and associated plant remains.
• Studying taphonomy and fossil preservation in non-marine clastic formations based on the mould preservation in sandstone.

Strengths

• Includes description of a new species of the antiarch Bothriolepis.
• Fauna includes multiple taxonomic groups (antiarchs, rhipidistians) and associated plant remains.
• Provides specific geological context (Knobby Sandstone, eastern Canning Basin).

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Scientific description of fossil specimens collected from the Knobby Sandstone.

Time Range

Late Devonian (Famennian age)

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-30 14:45:39.002346; freshness should be verified

Geography

Billiluna, eastern Canning Basin, Western Australia