The Radiolaria of the Herefordshire Konservat-Lagerstätte (Silurian), England

Abstract

Abstract. Concretions of the Wenlock Series Herefordshire Konservat-Lagerstätte of the Welsh Borderland have yielded one of the few recorded Silurian radiolarian faunas world-wide and the only one known from the Silurian of Britain. The low diversity radiolarian fauna consists of new forms of Inaniguttidae (Inanihella sagena sp. nov. and Inanihella sp.), Haplentactiniidae (Haplentactinia armista sp. nov.) and a previously reported form of Secuicollactidae (Secuicollacta hexatinia (Won et al., 2002)). The fauna has affinities with Silurian radiolarian assemblages of the Urals, the Canadian Arctic and Alaska. Stratigraphically the Herefordshire fauna appears transitional between established Silurian radiolarian biozones.

Biostratigraphical and palaeobiogeographical implications of Lower Silurian Radiolaria from black cherts of the Armorican Massif (France)

“…occurrence. Middle Aeronian (sample MT18), Chalonnes-sur-Loire section, France (this study); lower Telychian, Road River Formation, Tatonduk River area, east-central Alaska (Won et al, 2002); upper Sheinwoodian to lower Homerian, Wenlock Series of Herefordshire, england (Siveter et al, 2007).…”

Three-dimensionally preserved soft tissues and calcareous hexactins in a Silurian sponge: implications for early sponge evolution

“…Siliceous biomineralized elements occur in other taxa from the Herefordshire deposit, including radiolarians ([24]; figure 6 e ) and numerous as-yet-unstudied sponges (figure 6 a – d ). These elements are preserved in a distinctive style, replaced or partially replaced by the carbonate mineral ankerite (Ca(Fe,Mg,Mn)(CO 3 ) 2 ), which is yellow in colour ([25], see also [24]). Siliceous elements, either in ankerite or as primary silica, form sharply bounded structures which are clearly distinct from areas of calcite within Herefordshire fossils (figure 6 a – d ).…”

“…Siliceous biomineralized elements occur in other taxa from the Herefordshire deposit, including radiolarians ( [24]; figure 6e) and numerous as-yet-unstudied sponges (figure 6a-d ). These elements are preserved in a distinctive style, replaced or partially replaced by the carbonate mineral ankerite (Ca(Fe,Mg,Mn)(CO 3 ) 2 ), which is yellow in colour ( [25], see also [24]).…”

A new probable stem lineage crustacean with three-dimensionally preserved soft parts from the Herefordshire (Silurian) Lagerstätte, UK

“…425 Myr ago) of the Welsh Borderland (Briggs et al 1996) represents one of only a few Lagerstätten known from the ca 70 Myr period between the Cambrian and the Devonian. This deposit has yielded radiolarians (Orr et al 2002;Siveter et al 2007a); a diversity of sponges; a polychaete worm (Sutton et al 2001c); an aplacophoran-like mollusc (Sutton et al 2001a(Sutton et al , 2004; a platyceratid gastropod (Sutton et al 2006); orthoconic nautiloids; several arthropods, including a pycnogonid (Siveter et al 2004), a stem-group chelicerate (Orr et al 2000b;Sutton et al 2002), two myodocopid ostracodes (Siveter et al 2003a(Siveter et al , 2007b, a barnacle (Briggs et al 2005) and a phyllocarid (Briggs et al 2004); a brachiopod (Sutton et al 2005b); several echinoderms, including an asteroid species (Sutton et al 2005a); graptolites; and a number of organisms whose affinities remain enigmatic. The new species established here represents the fifth crustacean described from this Lagerstätte, the 78 known specimens comprising approximately 3% of the recorded fauna.…”