THE DIVERSE BIOTA OF THE MILWAUKEE FORMATION (LATE GIVETIAN, MIDDLE DEVONIAN, WISCONSIN) AND ITS NEED FOR MODERN ANALYSIS

Abstract

The majority of the fossil taxa from the late Givetian Milwaukee Formation have not been studied for over 100 years, yet a recent study suggests that it may represent one of the most diverse biotas of its age in North America. Opportunities for collecting new material are limited, but unstudied museum material is plentiful. Studies by numerous 19th to early 21st century researchers described a rich biota of marine protists, invertebrates, fish, and trace fossils, along with unusual morphological features in some of its taxa, common examples of color patterns, rare cases of exceptional preservation, and terrestrial organisms, such as lycopods. A 2019 study by the authors of this abstract demonstrated that the Milwaukee Formation has one of the most diverse biotas of its age known from a single formation. It was established that these strata contain about 250 species from 100 families, sixteen phyla, and four kingdoms, representing both marine and terrestrial environments. This includes possible cladoxylopsids, the giant fungus Prototaxites, edrioasteroids, dendroid graptolites, more ichnogenera than previously published, and structures not previously described from some of its crinoids, bryozoans, and other taxa. Much is left to be learned from these museum specimens with future study and preparation using modern techniques. The major collections and their repositories are the T.A. Greene collection (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee), the C.E. Monroe, G.O. Raasch, and J.G. Emielity collections (Milwaukee Public Museum), the E.E. Teller collections (National Museum of Natural History, Field Museum, Royal Ontario Museum, and Buffalo Museum of Science), the F.H. Day collection (Museum of Comparative Zoology), and the H.F. Cleland collection (Williams College). Due to the large volume of unstudied material in these collections, we encourage specialists to undertake new research on this important biota.