More than one kind of fossil fish
The Natural History Museum's fossil fish collection includes armored placoderms, cartilaginous fish represented by shark teeth and ray-finned fish. Its material ranges from skeletons to scales and teeth. Different preserved parts give researchers different evidence to work with.
Sources: [1]
Follow the preserved parts
Read the summary beneath each name, then open the exhibit to see the specimen or species behind the claim. The dossier explains whether feeding is supported by preserved meals, modeled from anatomy or unresolved in the sources reviewed.
A whole-body reconstruction can extend beyond the preserved fossil. Check the size note and scientific-image caption before treating a picture as a measured body outline or comparing it with another exhibit. The paired galleries are not shown at a shared scale.
A wider world of aquatic creatures
DinoGrove keeps the fish profiles separate from marine reptiles and marine turtles in these browsing guides. You can still collect their fictional game variants, care for a game egg and earn a companion through the same creature-collecting system.
Explore prehistoric fish by name
7 linked profiles. Choose a name for the complete exhibit and sources.
C
Cretoxyrhina
A large Cretaceous lamniform shark whose tail skeleton supports an active swimming reconstruction. [1]
D
Dunkleosteus
Dunkleosteus terrelli was an armored Devonian fish from Ohio. Bony jaw blades and preserved armor constrain its reconstruction, while much of the tail remains unknown. [1]
E
H
Helicoprion
A cartilaginous fish with one spiral tooth whorl supported inside the lower jaw. [1]
L
Leedsichthys
A giant ray-finned fish whose filtering apparatus and incomplete skeleton make size reconstruction a careful puzzle. [1]
P
X
Xiphactinus
A large toothed ray-finned fish, with a famous fossil preserving another fish inside it. [1]
Sources for this guide
- Fossil fish collectionNatural History Museum, London · Accessed 2026-10-09