(internal #F510-7).  One tooth from an Enchodus Saber-toothed Herring fish tooth fossil, average 1-1/8 to 1-5/8" long.

ENCHODUS FOSSIL FISH TEETH

Excavated in Oued Zem, Khouribga, phosphate plateau, Morocco

This tooth belonged to an "Enchodus" fish which is an extinct genus of bony fish.  It flourished during the Upper Cretaceous and was small to medium in size.  One of the genus' most notable attributes are the large "fangs" at the front of the upper & lower jaws, and on the palatine bones, leading to the misleading nickname among fossil hunters and paleoichyologists, "the saber-toothed herring".  These fangs, along with a sleek body and large eyes, suggest Enchodus was a predatory species. 

Despite being a formidable predator, remains of Enchodus are commonly found among the stomach contents of larger predators, including sharks, other bony fish, mosasaurs, plesiosaurs and seabirds such as Baptornis advenus.

Approx. age:  66 to 96 million years old

Order:  Salmoniformes

Suborder:  Enchodontoidei

Family:  Enchodontidae

Genus:  Enchodus

Agassiz 1835