A NEW PALEOCENE GENUS AND SPECIES OF PERCOPSIFORM (TELEOSTEI, PARACANTHOPTERYGII) FROM THE PASKAPOO FORMATION, SMOKY-TOWER, ALBERTA

A new genus and species of teleostean fish, Lateopisciculus turrifumos us (fossil taxon), from the Palaeocene Paskapoo Formation at Smoky Tow er, Alberta, is described. This new species is classified in the Famil y Percopsidae (Paracanthopterygii: Percopsiformes), based on the prese nce of a dorsal process on the maxilla. The presence of this fish exte nds the earliest known age of this family from the Eocene (Amphiplaga and Erismatopterus (fossil taxa)) to the Late Palaeocene. The fossil a ssemblage at the Smoky Tower locality includes pike (Esocidae), an ost eoglossomorph, and two salamanders as well as the new species of perco psid. The site was likely an oxbow lake or shallow swamp. A mass-death event is indicated by the multiple species and size- and age-class di stribution of the specimens.