Anatomical review of †Salminops ibericus, a Teleostei incertae sedis from the Cenomanian of Portugal, anciently assigned to Characiformes and possibly related to crossognathiform fishes

†Salminops ibericus Gayet, 1985 was described on the basis of a single specimen from the Cenomanian deposits of Caranguejeira, a marine locality northern Lisbon. The original taxonomic designation of this fish exposed it as the oldest member of the order Characiformes, which also includes the South American piranhas and the African tetras. In the context of the passionate debates on otophysan diversification, some authors considered †Salminops ibericus Gayet, 1985 as evidence for the marine origin of characiform fish (and subsequently of otophysans). Conversely others, supporting freshwater origin of the clade, contested this assignment, but without any review of the material. The review of the anatomy and taxonomical affinities of †Salminops ibericus supports its exclusion of the Order Characiformes and emphasizes its condition as a Teleostei incertae sedis, possibly with certain crossognathiforms. These results therefore highlight the necessity to revisit key fossil taxa beside the description of new material to enhance the knowledge on the paleodiversifications and their timing.

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