Capros Fish Fossil With Aspiration!!! - Died Eating

This is a truly exceptional specimen of a rarely seen fish, Capros radobojanus. Not only is this small fish extremely well preserved but it is preserved in the process of eating another fish also known as aspiration. It very likely died choking on it's prey, a very rare behavior to see preserved in the fossil record. Aspiration is very rarely seen in predatory fish in the Green River Formation of Wyoming, with predatory fish like Mioplosus eating smaller fish, and those specimens command big bucks.

This specimen is Oligocene in age, from the Carpathian Basin of Poland and is 1.24" long. The detail is simply amazing for a fish of it's size.

The genus Capros is commonly referred to as a "Boar Fish" and the genus is still alive today. They are small, predatory marine fishes which first appeared during the Eocene period. Today the inhabit the Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans at depths more than about 50 meters.