BOTHRIOLEPIS

also spelled Bothryolepis, genus of extinct fishes of the order Antiarcha, class Placodermi, characteristic of the Middle and Late Devonian (from about 387 million to 360 million years ago). The front end of Bothriolepis was very heavily encased in bony armour. The eyes were located on top of the head shield and situated very close to the light-receptive pineal eye. The shield was separated into two parts, one for the head, the other for the thorax. The posterior portions of the body were naked, lacking even scales. Very strongly developed bony spines in the shoulder region appear to have had a serrated edge and were movable. The genus apparently had functional lungs, indicating that lungs are very ancient structures. It is probable that Bothriolepis was a bottom-dwelling animal inhabiting streams and lakes and pulled itself about along the bottom with its hooklike arms. With its weakly developed mouth, Bothriolepis was clearly not an active predator.