
Photo: National Park Service, Fossil Butte National Monument
- Order
- Clupeiformes
- Family
- Clupeidae
- Size
- About 10.5 cm / 4.1 in
A schooling Fossil Lake herring often found in mass mortality plates.
The Clupeidae family has an estimated 50 modern freshwater species. Clupeidae species can lay as many as 200,000 eggs at once, allowing species to multiply quickly. Modern species are also prone to mass die-offs.
Both K. eocaena and K. alta are frequently discovered in mass mortality plates, some containing up to 100 fish per square meter. This suggests that, like their modern relatives, the Knightia species were sensitive to environmental changes.
Species text: National Park Service, Fossil Butte National Monument — Fossil Fish Species.