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Cephalaspis — Description
Cephalaspis is a species of fish belonging to the osteotracan lineage.
This creature was relatively small, its size ranging from 20 to 30 centimeters in length, and is easily recognizable thanks to its armoured head, which was equipped with developed sensory organs that helped it detect food.
Speaking of food, the Cephalaspis had a mouth located on the underside of its head but lacked jaws, thus being unable to bite anything.
Such features helped researchers determine that it was at least detritivorous, feeding on organic detritus, algae and small molluscs, akin to the modern sturgeons.
The Cephalaspis itself could have been prey to larger animals, which probably explained why its eyes were located so high on top of its skull as such configuration would have allowed the fish to detect threats coming from every direction.
This intriguing fish species lived during the early stages of the Devonian period, most specifically in a timespan ranging from 415 to 398 million years BC.