Illaenidae (Trilobita): Morphology of thorax, classification, and mode of life

Abstract

The axial rings of the thorax of seven Ordovician species of Illaenidae, and of the type species of the SilurianCybantyx,all have the ring curved downward and forward, lacking the articulating furrow but traversed by a stout ventral ridge; the doublure similarly curves downward and forward. This type of axial ring is apparently unique among post-Cambrian trilobites. The axial ring in Scutelluidae is like that occurring in most post-Cambrian trilobites, having a convex ring, deep articulating furrow, and horizontal half ring and doublure. These and many other characters distinguish the Styginidae-Scutelluidae group from Illaenidae.Cybantyxis not an effaced scutelluid, but an illaenid. Upper Cambrian illaenid-like trilobites, which have the illaenid type of thoracic axial ring, deserve consideration as possible ancestors of post-Cambrian illaenids. The thorax is given considerable flexibility by the illaenid axial ring, enabling the body to have been flexed unusually strongly concavely dorsally, as well as to enroll. The musculature suggested omits dorsal longitudinal muscles. It is argued that many illaenids may have been vagrant benthos, particularly adapted for negotiating over irregular surfaces. The view that illaenids lived partly in a burrow is not supported by specimens preserved in such an attitude. The arrangement and varying strength of the terrace ridges on the exoskeleton ofCybantyxis consistent with their having had a sensory function; anastomosing caeca on the fixed cheek and the pleural region of the pygidium are described.