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Slapylitidae: a new family of hyolithids (Cambrian–?Devonian; Baltica, Laurentia, Gondwana)

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Abstract

Hyoliths are usually preserved as isolated skeletal elements consisting of conch, operculum, and helens. The occurrence of a conch associated with an operculum is ordinarily exceptional, and the co-occurrence of helens with other skeletal parts is a great rarity. The extraordinary finds of hyolithid conchs associated with opercula in situ are relatively abundant in the Cambrian and Ordovician clastic sediments of the Barrandian area in the Czech Republic. The platyclaviculate operculum with clavicles divided by longitudinal walls into channels characterizes members of the newly established family Slapylitidae fam. nov., which includes two genera: Slapylites Marek, 1980 known from the mid-Cambrian of West Gondwana and Baltica and Nevadalites Marek, 1976 documented from the Late Cambrian of Laurentia. To this family most probably belongs also an operculum from the Cambrian Series 2–Series 3 boundary of North Greenland and poorly known material from the Middle Devonian of Bolivia.

Kurzfassung

Hyolithen sind für gewöhnlich als isolierte skelettartige Elemente – bestehend aus Schale, Operculum und Helenen – erhalten. Das Auftreten einer Schale mit assoziiertem Operculum ist relativ ungewöhnlich und ein gleichzeitiges Vorkommen von Helenen mit anderen Skelettelementen zählt zu den großen Raritäten. Die ungewöhnlichen Funde von hyolithiden Schalen mit in situ erhaltenem Operculum sind vergleichsweise häufig in klastischen Sedimenten (Kambrium und Ordovizium) des Barrandiums der Tschechischen Republik zu finden. Das platyclaviculate Operculum mit Claviceln, durch längsgerichtete Scheidewände in Kanäle getrennt, charakterisiert Vertreter der neuen Familie Slapylitidae fam. nov., welche Vertreter zweier Gattungen beinhaltet: Slapylites Marek, 1980 (bekannt aus dem mittleren Kambrium West-Gondwanas und Balticas) und Nevadalites Marek, 1976 (belegt aus dem späten Kambrium von Laurentia). Dieser Familie gehört höchstwahrscheinlich auch das kaum bekannte Material aus dem Mittel-Devon Boliviens, wie auch ein Operculum aus dem Kambrium (Serie 2/Serie3-Grenzbereich) Nord-Grönlands, an.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are indebted to Vojtěch Turek (National Museum, Czech Republic), John M. Malinky (San Diego City College, USA) and Monica Martí Mus (Universidad de Extremadura, Spain) for helpful comments and suggestions, which greatly improved the clarity of the paper. This work was financially supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic (DKRVO 2017/06, National Museum, 00023272 – M. Valent) and by PROGRESS Q45 of the Ministry of education, youth and sports of the Czech Republic (O. Fatka).

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  1. Deceased: Ladislav Marek.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Palaeontological Department, National Museum, Cirkusová 1740, 193 00, Praha 9, Czech Republic

    Martin Valent

  2. Faculty of Science Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Charles University in Prague, Albertov 6, 128 43, Prague 2, Czech Republic

    Oldřich Fatka

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  1. Martin Valent
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Correspondence to Martin Valent.

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Valent, M., Fatka, O. & Marek, L. Slapylitidae: a new family of hyolithids (Cambrian–?Devonian; Baltica, Laurentia, Gondwana). PalZ 91, 497–505 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12542-017-0369-1

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