James William Davis

Fossil of Exocoetoides minor. Cenomanian of Haqel, Lebanon a species originally described by James William Davis in 1887

James William Davis (1846, Leeds-1893) was a British naturalist who specialised in fossil fish. He lived at Chevinedge, Halifax in Yorkshire. James William Davis was a leading member of the Yorkshire Naturalists' Union and a Fellow of the Geological Society of London.

Works

partial list

• Davis, J.W. (1879) Description of a new species of fossil fish spine, Ctenacanthus minor, from the Lower Coal-Measures of Yorkshire. Geological Magazine, decade 2, 6: 531–532
• Davis, J.W. (1880) On the fish fauna of the Yorkshire Coal Field. Proceedings of the Geologists' Association, 6 (8): 359–370
• Davis, J. W. (1880) On a new species of Gyracanthus, a fossil fish from the Coal-Measures. Annals and Magazine of Natural History 6:372-373. Online here
• Davis, J.W. (1880) On the genus Pleuracanthus, Agass., including Orthacanthus, Agass., and Gold., Diplodus, Agass., and Xenacanthus, Beyr. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, 36: 321–336 Online here
• Davis, J.W. (1880) On the fish-remains found in the Cannel Coal in the Middle Coal-Measures of the West Riding of Yorkshire, with the description of some new species. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, 36: 56–67 online here
• Davis, J.W. (1880) On the fish fauna of the Yorkshire Coal Field. Proceedings of the Geologists' Association, 6 (8): 359–370
• Davis, J.W. (1881) On the genera Ctenoptychius, Agassiz; Ctenopetalus, Agassiz; and Harpacodus, Agassiz. Annals and Magazine of Natural History, (Series 5), 8: 424–427
• Davis, J.W. (1881) Notes on the fish-remains of the bone-bed at Aust, near Bristol; with the description of some new genera and species. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, 37: 414–426 online here
• Davis, J.W. (1882) On Diodontopsodus, Davis, a new genus of fossil fishes from the Mountain Limestone, at Richmond, in Yorkshire. Abstract. Report of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, 51: 646
• Davis, J.W. (1883) On the fossil fishes of the Carboniferous Limestone Series of Great Britain. Scientific Transactions of the Royal Dublin Society, Series 2, 1: 327–548
• Davis, J.W. (1884) On some remains of fossil fishes from the Yoredale Series at Leyburn in Wensleydale. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, 40: 614–635 online here
• Davis, J.W. (1887) The fossil fishes of the chalk of Mount Lebanon, in Syria. Scientific Transactions of the Royal Dublin Society, 2 (3): 457–636, pl. 14–38. Online here Communicated by William Cole, 3rd Earl of Enniskillen.
• Davis, J.W. (1887) Note on a fossil species of Chlamydoselachus. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1887: 542–544
• Davis, J.W. (1888) Note on a species of Scymnus from the upper Tertiary formation of New Zealand. Geological Magazine, decade 3, 5: 315–316
• Davis, J.W. (1888) On fossil fish-remains from the Tertiary and Cretaceo-Tertiary formations of New-Zealand. Scientific Transactions of the Royal Dublin Society, 4 (2): 1–48, 7 pl.
• Davis, J.W. (1890) On the fossil fish of the Cretaceous formations of Scandinavia. Scientific Transactions of the Royal Dublin Society, 2 (4): 363–434, pl. 38 Online here
• Davis, J.W. (1892) On the fossil fish-remains of the coal measures of the British Islands. Part I. Pleuracanthidae Scientific Transactions of the Royal Dublin Society, 2 (4): 703–748 Online here
• Davis, J.W.(1899) Fossil Fish-remains from Carboniferous Shales at Cultra, Co. Down, Ireland Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological and Polytechnic Society, 11, 332-334

Taxa described by Davis

Taxa described by Davis include

• Cheirothrix lewisii
• Rhinobatos intermedius Davis 1887
• Rhinobatos latus Davis 1887
• Rhinobatos tenuirostris Davis 1887
• Anodontacanthus, Davis, 1881
• Ctenacanthus minor Davis, 1879
• Gyracanthus denticulatus Davis, 1880
• Strepsodus brockbanki Davis, 1891.
• Diodontopsodus Davis, 1882
• Exocoetoides Davis, 1887

• 
  Yoredale Fossil Fishes Plate Davis 1884
• 
  Yoredale Fossil Fishes Plate Davis 1884
• 
  Cretaceous Fish of Scandinavia Davis 1884
• 
  Fossil Fishes of the Coal Measures of theBritish Islands Davis 1892
• 
  Spines of Peuracanthus

References

• Anon 1904 The History of the Collections Contained in the Natural History Departments of the British Museum, Volume 1 Trustees of the British Museum
• Obituary in The Naturalist