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Problematic cap-shaped fossils from the Lower Cambrian of North-East Greenland

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Kurzfassung

Drei Arten vonOcruranus Liu, 1979 aus der mittelkambrischen Bastion-Formation (mittleres Dyeran in nordamerikanischer Gliederung) in Nord-Ost Grönland werden beschrieben. Die Funde stellen das jüngste Auftreten einer Gattung dar, die ursprünglich aus der Meishucun-Stufe des frühesten Unterkambrium in China beschrieben wurde. Eine vergesellschaftete Art, vorläufig zuXianfengella He &Yang, 1982 gestellt, scheint ebenfalls in unterkambrischen Schichten (Botoman in sibirischer Gliederung) in Süd-Australien vorzukommen, obwohl auch diese Gattung ursprünglich aus dem Meishucun beschrieben wurde. Die chinesischen Exemplare vonOcruranus undXianfengella wurden als mögliche Sklerite von Coeloscleritophora-Skleritomen (möglicherweise Halkieriiden) anstelle von einzelnen Mollusken-Gehäusen gedeutet. Die Gehäuseform ist untypisch für Helcionelloiden, die sonst die Überlieferung unterkambrischer Mollusken dominieren. Das Material von Grönland liefert jedoch keine schlüssigen Belege für die Verwandschaft der Gattungen. Neue Taxa:Ocruranus septentrionalis n. sp. undOcruranus tunuensis n. sp.

Abstract

Three species ofOcruranus Liu, 1979 are described from the Bastion Formation of North-East Greenland, of late Early Cambrian (middle Dyeran of North American usage) age, representing the youngest record of a genus originally described from the earliest Cambrian Meishucunian Stage of China. An accompanying species, tentatively assigned toXianfengella He &Yang, 1982, seems also to be present in South Australia in strata of late Early Cambrian (Botoman of Siberian usage) age, although also this genus was described originally from the Meishucunian.Ocruranus andXianfengella from China have been interpreted as possibly parts of coeloscleritophoran scleritomes, perhaps halkieriids, rather than individual molluscan shells. Their shell form is not typical of helcionelloids which otherwise dominate the Early Cambrian molluscan record, but conclusive evidence of affinity is not forthcoming from the Greenland records. New taxa:Ocruranus septentrionalis n. sp. andOcruranus tunuensis n. sp.

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  1. Program for Paleobiology, Department of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 22, SE-752 36, Uppsala, Sweden

    John S. Peel & Christian B. Skovsted

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  1. John S. Peel
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Peel, J.S., Skovsted, C.B. Problematic cap-shaped fossils from the Lower Cambrian of North-East Greenland. Paläontol Z 79, 461–470 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02988372

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