Ostracoderms: The First Vertebrates (PA-18)
From 3 to 10 inches long, ostracoderms had rather thick, flattened bodies with only a pair of side flaps to help in steering. They probably swam clumsily just above the sea floor. The mouth served to obtain oxygen and to retain bits of food.
After true fish appeared about 400 million years ago, most ostracoderms rapidly became extinct. An armorless type survived, giving rise to modern lampreys and hagfish. Some ostracoderm plates are found in Devonian bone beds in Indiana.
Our Hoosier State Beneath Us: Paleontology