Deepwater occurrence of a newGlyptocrinus(Crinoidea, Camerata) from the Late Ordovician of southwestern Ohio and northern Kentucky: revision of crinoid paleocommunity composition

Abstract

A new crinoid association reported from the Kope Formation (Katian, Ordovician) of northern Kentucky and southwestern Ohio changes the model for facies distribution of crinoids along an Ordovician onshoreoffshore depth gradient. Glyptocrinus nodosus n. sp., Plicodendrocrinus casei (Meek, 1871), Cincinnaticrinus varibrachialis (Warn and Strimple, 1977), and Ectenocrinus simplex (Hall, 1847) are reported from a suspensionfeeding assemblage with 26 taxa. This assemblage developed above an argillaceous packstone with most of the fossils preserved in shale. The fauna was comprised principally of secondary epifaunally tiered suspension feeders, deposit feeders, and predators. This is the first reported occurrence of Glyptocrinus Hall, 1847 and Plicodendrocrinus Brower, 1995 from the Kope Formation (lower Cincinnatian), and Glyptocrinus is represented by a new species, G. nodosus. Also, this is the first report of pinnulate camerate crinoids from the deep-water facies of the Kope Formation. Thus, deep-water Cincinnatian crinoid assemblages were comprised of disparids, cladids, and camerates; and the assemblage was characterized by a variety of filtration fan types for acquisition of resources.

Paleocommunity composition, relative abundance, and new camerate crinoids from the Brechin Lagerstätte (Upper Ordovician)

“…Glyptocrinus circumcarinatus Parks and Alcock, 1912; G. fornshelli Miller, 1874; G. nodosus Kallmeyer and Ausich, 2015; G. ottawaensis Wilson, 1946; G. ramulosus Billings, 1856; G. tridactylus Brower and Veinus, 1978. Glyptocrinus quinquepartitus Billings, 1859 was defined on the basis of column material and might not represent a valid species of Glyptocrinus .…”

The Belgrade PaleoBlitz: A pilot project to engage amateur paleontologists

“…However, this dichotomy is an antiquated perception, as by definition the only thing that distinguishes professionals from amateurs is compensation for their work. Amateur, or avocational, paleontologists span the gambit of citizen science participation-from serendipitous fossil discoveries (e.g., Godfrey, 2015) to leading advanced research (e.g., Kallmeyer and Ausich, 2015). Many amateurs have expertise on par with that of professionals, well-curated collections with elegant exhibits akin to museums, and collaborate within clubs and societies.…”

A noteworthy accumulation of disparid crinoids from the type Cincinnatian (Upper Ordovician) of southwestern Ohio, USA: implications for the palaeoecology and taphonomy of crinoid “logjam” assemblages

“…The type Cincinnatian (Upper Ordovician, Katian) succession of the greater Cincinnati Arch region, eastern midcontinental USA, is recognised as one of the most exhaustively studied stratigraphic intervals in North America (see syntheses in Davis and Cuffey 1998;McLaughlin et al 2008;Meyer and Davis 2009). Crinoids are a fossil group that is fairly ubiquitous throughout the type Cincinnatian, serving as the primary subject of numerous systematic, palaeoecological and taphonomic studies (e.g., Ausich 1996Ausich , 1999Donovan and Schmidt 2001;Meyer et al 2002;Brett et al 2008;Kallmeyer and Ausich 2015). Nevertheless, important and interesting discoveries related to the distribution and preservation of crinoids continue to be made as novel analytical techniques are applied to datasets and new exposures are described and sampled.…”

“…This occurrence presents an opportunity to document in detail hitherto undescribed palaeontological and sedimentological aspects of crinoid fossils within an interval known for an abundance of crinoidal material. As recently emphasised by Kallmeyer and Ausich (2015), such occurrences have the potential to revise broader palaeocommunity models and palaeoecological interpretations, making documentation of interesting and/or rare specimens a significant contribution.…”