IT'S official. The state fossil emblem for NSW is Mandageria fairfaxi, a 370-million-year-old fish.
Named after a creek near Eugowra and commemorating the contribution of publisher and art collector James Fairfax in supporting research into the fossil fish, the Mandageria fairfaxi is believed to be unique to NSW.
It featured a movable neck that marked a critical stage in vertebrate evolution.
Industry, Resources and Energy Minister Anthony Roberts and NSW Nationals leader and Arts Minister Troy Grant announced the fossil as an official state fossil emblem today.
The Geological Survey of NSW consulted paleontological experts, cultural associations and institutions to determine a worthy state fossil emblem.
"This declaration recognises the rich scientific heritage that lies beneath our feet," Mr Roberts said.
He said the fish was one of the largest fish fossil finds in the world, measuring up to 1.7 metres long.
It was found in a 1993 excavation near Canowindra in the Central West in what was a former billabong that suddenly dried up 370 million years ago, preserving thousands of fish fossils from the Late Devonian period.
A council worker grading a road accidentally uncovered the scientifically important fossil site in 1955.
Mr Grant said Canowindra was now home to the Age of Fishes Museum, where visitors can touch the real fossils of this fish.
"This fossil builds on Canowindra's reputation as one of the best destinations for paleontology enthusiasts in the world," he said.
The Waratah remains the official NSW floral emblem while the fossil joins the kookaburra as the bird emblem, the platypus as the animal emblem, the blue groper as the fish emblem and the black opal as the gemstone emblem.
The Division of Resources and Energy (DRE) is running a competition for primary school children to nickname the fossil.
Entries close on September 18.
n Visit www.resourcesandenergy.nsw.gov.au
