Eolactoria

{{Short description|Extinct species of fish}}

{{Italic title}}

{{Speciesbox

| name = Eolactoria

| image = Eolactoria sorbinii 1.JPG

| image_caption = Fossil specimen

| image2 =

| image2_caption =

| fossil_range = {{fossilrange|50|49|Late Ypresian{{cite journal|last=Sepkoski |first=Jack |title=A compendium of fossil marine animal genera |journal=Bulletins of American Paleontology |volume=363 |pages=1–560 |year=2002 |url=http://strata.ummp.lsa.umich.edu/jack/showgenera.php?taxon=611&rank=class |accessdate=2009-02-27 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723131237/http://strata.ummp.lsa.umich.edu/jack/showgenera.php?taxon=611&rank=class |archivedate=2011-07-23 }}}}

| taxon = Eolactoria sorbinii

| parent_authority = Tyler, 1975

| authority = Tyler 1975

}}

Eolactoria ("dawn Lactoria") is an extinct genus of highly unusual prehistoric boxfish from the Eocene. It contains a single species, E. sorbinii from the Ypresian-aged Monte Bolca site in Italy.{{Cite web |title=PBDB Taxon |url=https://paleobiodb.org/classic/basicTaxonInfo?taxon_no=36292 |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=paleobiodb.org}}{{Cite journal |last1=Carnevale |first1=G. |last2=Bannikov |first2=Alexandre F. |last3=Marramà |first3=G. |last4=Tyler |first4=James C. |last5=Zorzin. |first5=R. |date=2014 |title=The Bolca Fossil-Lagerstätte: A window into the Eocene World. 5. The Pesciara- Monte Postale Fossil-Lagerstätte: 2. Fishes and other vertebrates. Excursion guide |url=https://iris.unito.it/bitstream/2318/149338/1/Carnevale%20et%20al%202014%20The%20Pesciara%20F-L.%20Fishes%20and%20other%20vertebrates2.pdf |journal=Rendiconti della Società Paleontologica Italiana |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=i–xxvii |hdl=10088/25678}}

File:Eolactoria sorbinii.jpg

It had two pairs of long spines, one over each eye, and one pair beneath the anal and caudal fins, arranged very similarly to those possessed by the modern genus Lactoria (e.g., "cowfish"), but much longer. E. sorbinii had a fifth spine between the two eye-spines, arranged and looking very much like a nose.

The only known fossil specimen is about 5 cm (2 in) long.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}