Bryozoan Fauna Research Articles

Bryozoan fauna from the Ferques Formation (Upper Devonian, Frasnian) of France

Bryozoan fauna from the Ferques Formation (Upper Devonian, Frasnian) of France

Changing bryozoan fauna in Otago Harbour reflects growing urbanisation and globalisation

ABSTRACT A comparison between historic reports dating from 1884 (78 records of 35 species) to the bryozoan fauna present today (98 colonies of 14 species) reveals considerable faunal change in Otago Harbour / Te Wai Ōtākou (45° 50'S 170° 38'E) in Dunedin, east coast of South Island, Aotearoa New Zealand. This highly-modified urban port was once a rock-edged tidal inlet surrounded by bush and grassy hills, but changes to its flora and fauna are not limited to land and the intertidal. Our modern bryozoan surveys record predominantly ‘weedy’ invasive species which colonise anthropogenic surfaces, while previously-recorded larger, slower-growing native species are now missing. This study emphasises the importance of historical data and regular monitoring in determining baselines for conservation and restoration.

Biostratigraphic, palaeoenvironmental and palaeobiogeographic implications of bryozoan fauna from the Upper Devonian sequences of Armenia

This paper presents the first contribution to the study of bryozoans from the Frasnian–lower Famennian successions of Armenia. The latter were examined in two distinct localities (Ertych and Noravank) of Central Armenia; abundant fragments of branched ramose and encrusting bryozoans were observed in them, belonging to the orders Trepostomata and Cryptostomata. Their taxonomic assessment led us to recognize four species: two cryptostomes – Euthyrhombopora tenuisErnst et al., 2017 and Bigeyella indigena (Morozova and Weiss in Morozova et al., 2002) from the Noravank section (Frasnian) – and two trepostomes – Eostenopora sp. and Eridotrypella sp. from the Ertych section (lower Famennian). No cystoporate and fenestrate bryozoans were observed. The identified bryozoans are characteristic of shallow marine or middle shelf paleoenvironments. The presence of Euthyrhombopora tenuis and Bigeyella indigena suggests palaeobiogeographic affinities to contemporary faunas from Iran and Poland, respectively. In addition to our results, an overview of previously published data reveals that the upper Famennian assemblages of bryozoans from the Lesser Caucasus contain more endemic species than those known from the Frasnian and the lowermost Famennian.

Palaeoecology and palaeobiogeographic relationships of Lower Devonian bryozoans from the Guadámez and Peñón Cortado Sections of Sierra Morena (SW Spain)

Bryozoan fauna from the Lower Devonian (Pragian – Emsian) deposits of the Ossa-Morena Zone (SW Spain) comprises twenty-eight species: one cyclostome, two cystoporates, sixteen trepostomes, five cryptostomes, and four fenestrates. Three new genera with one new species, respectively, are described: cyclostome Diploclemella serenensis n. gen. n. sp., trepostome Cordobella tenuis n. gen. n. sp., and cryptostome (rhabdomesine) Serenella dubia n. gen. n. sp. Three trepostome species are new: Leptotrypa parva n. sp., L. modesta n. sp., and Boardmanella spinigera n. sp. Ten species are described in open nomenclature. The studied bryozoan fauna shows high morphological and taxonomical diversity, comprising mostly species of moderate size. The assemblage is clearly dominated by branched ramose and encrusting growth forms. The studied bryozoan fauna shows some distinct palaeobiogeographic relations to the bryozoans from the Lower Devonian of NW Spain, Morocco, and Czech Republic.

A Report on Bryozoan Fauna of Jayakwadi Bird Sanctuary, Maharashtra, India

The study attempts to understand the freshwater Bryozoan fauna of the Jayakwadi Bird Sanctuary, Maharashtra, India. The samples were collected and were identified based on colony morphology and floatoblast morphometry. Seven species belonging to the genus Lophopodella, Plumatella, Rumarcanella, and Hislopia were recorded. The study added valuable information on faunal resources in the Jayakwadi Bird Sanctuary.

Capturing the moment:a snapshot of Mediterranean bryozoan diversity in the early 2023

This paper is an update on the Mediterranean bryozoan diversity since the annotated check-list of Rosso & Di Martino (2016), following the publication of numerous new papers describing new taxa and new species, and adding new records of non-indigenous species. Of the 32 new species described, some replace records of cosmopolitan or widespread species, while some others are the result of the dismantling of species complexes. New records include mainly species and genera previously known from the near Atlantic and subordinately from the Pacific. In addition to replacements, removal of species/genera is also linked to formalized synonymies. These changes also reflect on the composition and representation of families. The updated bryozoan fauna consists of 587 species, 220 genera and 99 families. The different order proportions remain largely unchanged with cheilostomatids (c. 77%) dominating over cyclostomatids (c. 13%) and ctenostomatids (c. 10%). Ten families account for about half of the total species diversity. The new available information is the result of the investigation of habitats and localities previously overlooked, the examination of museum historical collections, as well as a more routinely use of Scanning Electron Microscopy with increasing support from molecular sequencing. Updated biodiversity check-lists represent a unique, simple tool to monitor biodiversity in agreement with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework adopted by the United Nations.

Large-Scale Variation in Diversity of Biomass-Dominating Key Bryozoan Species in the Seas of the Eurasian Sector of the Arctic

An analysis of archival and literary materials, as well as recently collected data in coastal areas at 14 locations in the Eurasian seas showed that the diversity of biomass-dominating key bryozoan species is low, totaling 26 species, less than 1/15 of the total bryozoan fauna richness. Their number decreases eastward from 17 species with an average total biomass of >16 g/m2 in the Barents Sea to three species with an average biomass of about 3 g/m2 in the East Siberian Sea. In the Chukchi Sea, their number and average biomass increase to 10 species and ~12 g/m2, respectively. Average biomass strongly correlates with the number of species in each sea. Furthermore, variation in biomass is significantly correlated with the composition of bottom sediments and, in some locations, with depth. The marked decrease in the number of key species along the vector from Barents→Kara→Laptev→East Siberian Sea is due to a decline in the number of boreal and boreal–Arctic bryozoans of Atlantic origin. In contrast, the appearance of boreal and boreal–Arctic Pacific species is responsible for the increase in key species in the Chukchi Sea.

Taxonomic Structure and Endemism of the Bryozoan Fauna of the Arctic Region

Taxonomic Structure and Endemism of the Bryozoan Fauna of the Arctic Region

Bryozoan fauna from the Pennsylvanian of the Sandia Mountains, New Mexico, USA

Bryozoan fauna from the Pennsylvanian of the Sandia Mountains, New Mexico, USA

Onychocellidae (Bryozoa) from the Maastrichtian Kallankurichchi Formation, Ariyalur Group, southern India

Onychocellidae (Bryozoa, Cheilostomatida) are one of the dominant components of the cheilostomatid bryozoan fossil assemblage in the Kallankurichchi Formation of the Ariyalur Group, Cauvery Basin, South India. The present study describes and illustrates eleven species of Onychocellidae from the sedimentary deposits of this formation. Among these, ten species are already known from these deposits, while one species is left in open nomenclature. Bryozoan fauna thrived during transgressional period indicating shallow marine environment and low sedimentation rate.

Late Devonian-early Carboniferous bryozoans from Zhankurgan (Greater Karatau, Kazakhstan)—taxonomy and palaeobiogeographical implications

Three bryozoan species Anomalotoechus sp., Pseudobatostomella sp. and Cyphotrypa sp. are described from the upper part of the Ermaksy Formation (lower-middle Famennian) of the Zhankurgan outcrop (Greater Karatau). These descriptions are important, because it is the first finding of upper Devonian bryozoans in Southern Kazakhstan. Five more species including one new Primorella zhankurganica sp. n. were found in limestones of the lower part of Orgalysay Formation (Upper Tournaisian) in the same outcrop. The hitherto known bryozoans from the Tournaisian of Greater Karatau constitute the most important bryozoan fauna from the carbonate platform, located on southwestern passive margin of the Kazakhstan palaeocontinent. The studied fauna reveals connections between different areas of Palaeotethys and Palaeoasian oceans in late Devonian-early Carboniferous.

Fenestrate bryozoan fauna from the Middle Devonian of the Eifel (western Rhenish Massif, Germany)

Seven fenestrate bryozoans are described from the Middle Devonian of the Eifel. Three species were identified as Prolixicella bifurcata Ernst and Schroeder, 2007, Rectifenestella aculeata (Sandberger and Sandberger, 1856), and Spinofenestella antiqua (Goldfuss, 1826). Four species are described in open nomenclature: Rectifenestella sp. 1 and sp. 2, Ptylopora sp., and Spinofenestella sp. Analysis of the distribution of the fenestrate bryozoans from the Middle Devonian of the Eifel shows their relatively high level of endemism revealing some few connections to the Devonian of Europe and Asia. The studied association shows similarities to the contemporary fauna from Sauerland.

한려해상국립공원의 조간대 태형동물 분포상

The intertidal bryozoan fauna of Hallyeohaesang National Park, Korea. This study aims to clarify the diversity of intertidal bryozoans which were collected from Hallyeohaesang National Park, Korea. A total of 37 species, 30 genera, 28 families, 3 orders and 2 classes of intertidal bryozoan were found in 20 locations (Tongyeong, Geoje, Sacheon, Namhae, and Yeosu) of Hallyeohaesang National Park from (July, October) 2019 to (May, September) 2020. Tongyeong⋅Hansan: 23 species, Geoje⋅Haegeumgang: 13 species, Sacheon: 20 species, Namhae: 3 species, Sangju⋅Geumsan: 26 species, Odongdo: 15 species were inhabited by region. The intertidal bryozoan of Hallyeohaesang National Park are provided with distributional data and detailed illustrations herein.

Cheilostomatida (Bryozoa) from the Ionian Apulian coast (Italy) with the description of new species

The mesophotic zone is a relatively poorly studied area of the Mediterranean Sea, drawing great interest by the scientific community in the last years. This zone represents a connection between the shallow water and the deep-sea communities, in which photophilic framework builders (e.g. coralline red algae) are gradually replaced by heterotrophic ones, such as ahermatypic corals and the bivalve Neopycnodonte cochlear. In this habitat the framework-forming organisms produce a hard substrate with a high topographic complexity, hosting a great biodiversity of secondary structuring taxa like bryozoans. During a survey on coralligenous banks in the mesophotic zone in c. 60 m depth off Gallipoli (southern Apulia), epibiotic aggregations of N. cochlear were found on the fans of the hexacoral Savalia savaglia. In the present paper the diversity of cheilostomatid bryozoans hosted by these bivalve aggregations is described and compared with published information on similar nearby habitats. A total of 48 taxa were found, six of which are newly described: Crassimarginatella matildae sp. nov., Micropora biopesiula sp. nov., Haplopoma celeste sp. nov., Schizomavella (Schizomavella) cerranoi sp. nov., Schizomavella (Calvetomavella) biancae sp. nov., and Schizoporella adelaide sp. nov. The species richness known from the southern Apulian shelf at this depth (47 species) is hereby raised to 83 cheilostomatid bryozoans. Moreover, only 12 species are shared with the other localities studied previously, while 36 are restricted to Gallipoli, supporting the hypothesis of a high rate of exclusivity among Apulian sites in terms of species composition. The differences in faunal composition, and particularly the presence of several new species discovered at Gallipoli, show once more that our knowledge of the bryozoan fauna in certain Mediterranean habitats is still incomplete and warrants further studies. https://doi.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:DDC82039-EF44-4169-8198-C67F60B14BA0

Bryozoan fauna from the Kunda Stage (Darriwilian, Middle Ordovician) of Estonia and NW Russia

Bryozoan fauna from the Kunda Stage (Darriwilian, Middle Ordovician) of Estonia and NW Russia

Checklist of the marine Bryozoa from Uruguay (Southwest Atlantic)

Knowledge of the marine bryozoan fauna of Uruguay is mostly based on scattered records found in local faunistic surveys and the taxonomic results of two oceanographic cruises to the Southwest Atlantic, but a comprehensive study has not yet been published for this area. This paper aims to compile an updated checklist, bringing together all the published information about the Uruguayan bryozoan fauna. Of the 73 recorded taxa, 30 (41%) are known only from deep waters off the Río de la Plata. Even considering undetermined species, these results show the high degree of endemism as it was already shown for several other benthic groups such as Bivalvia, Ascidiacea and Pycnogonida. The absence of local taxonomists on bryozoans has resulted in the unprecedented situation that the deep-sea bryozoan fauna of Uruguay is better known than the coastal and shelf representatives of the phylum. The main conclusion of this faunal compilation is that efforts should be made to coordinate the gathering and taxonomic study of shallow and shelf bryozoan collections to bridge the present knowledge gap about the biodiversity of this important group of marine benthic invertebrates.

On chronostratigraphic calibration using Bryozoa: suggestions from two Paleogene case studies

The bryozoan species present in each Paleocene and Eocene chronostratigraphic unit of the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plains in North America, and the Paris Basin in France are analysed. The comparison between species exclusive to each unit considered (EX), non-exclusive species, but appearing for the first (FA) or last time (LA), species existing before and after the unit considered (BA), and, finally, the total number of species present (T), shows the chronostratigraphic discriminating value of this fauna within the Paleogene. The same analysis was previously applied to bryozoan Paleocene and Eocene families and genera, according to the inormation. It is also interesting to note the significant renewal of bryozoan fauna in both basins during the Middle Eocene.

Bryozoan faunas at the Tortonian-Messinian transition. A palaeoenvironmental case study from Crete Island, eastern Mediterranean

Four sedimentary sections were logged and sampled from upper Tortonian-lower Messinian outcrops on the island of Crete (Greece). The collected material yielded about 60 bryozoan species belonging to nine different colonial morphotypes. A few species are stenobathic, indicating either shallow- or deep-water environments, but most of them are eurybathic (with bathymetric ranges extending in some instances from the shelf down to several hundreds of metres). Bryozoan communities point to sea-level variations modulated by local tectonics. Deep circalittoral environments were recognized at the base of three sections (whereas the fourth section starts with infralittoral/shallow circalittoral environments passing to deep circalittoral. Shallow bathyal habitats follow upwards, succeeded in turn by assemblages indicative of deep circalittoral and subsequently shallow circalittoral/infralittoral depths. Inferred bathymetric fluctuations are diachronous throughout the island. Shallow-water species found associated, sometimes abundantly, with rarer deep-water faunas in a few levels, are interpreted as transported by currents. Several dysoxic episodes have been also detected: likely the result of water column stratification and enhanced productivity. These processes were probably boosted by a combination of changes in oceanic circulation, climate, global sea-level, and the local/regional tectonics (in Crete and/or the marine gateways between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic).

Geology, geochemistry and depositional history of the Port Campbell Limestone on the eastern flank of the Otway Basin, southeastern Australia

A fully cored sequence of Hesse Clay, Port Campbell Limestone and uppermost Gellibrand Marl in the onshore Otway Basin, southeastern Australia, offers new insight into the evolution of the middle Miocene Port Campbell Limestone. The Port Campbell Limestone comprises grey unconsolidated to semi-consolidated and rarely lithified bioclastic muddy carbonate sands in a stack of thin repetitive cycles within cycles of predominantly shoaling-upward character. A glauconitic band with a distinctive mollusc–echinoderm–bryozoan fauna provides a distinctive marker interval in the sequence. In mineralogy, the Port Campbell Limestone is predominantly calcite with traces of remnant aragonite in muddier low-permeability sands, and with dolomitic zones in permeable intervals. The small non-carbonate component of the Port Campbell Limestone is between 3 and 15 wt% and comprises quartz silt with minor clay, feldspar and mica. Dissolution overprints are prominent throughout the carbonate sequence. Three distinct geochemical signatures of provenance are evident in the Port Campbell Limestone sequence, including possible volcanogenic contributions with felsic sources. Foraminifera are common and generally well preserved. Foraminiferal data suggest a depositional transition from outer shelf conditions in the Gellibrand Marl at ca 15 Ma to middle shelf environments in the lower part of the Port Campbell Limestone during the Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum (MMCO) at ca 14.24 Ma. Shallowing after 14 Ma indicates variable paleodepths of <70 m during and following the end of the Middle Miocene Climatic Transition (MMCT) at ca 13.2 Ma when the sequence was emergent for a brief but undetermined period, corresponding with sharp changes in geochemical ratios. Observed cyclicity in these mid-shelfal, cold-water carbonates is strongly correlated with orbital forcings—eccentricity and obliquity. Sedimentation rates determined from cyclostratigraphic analysis indicate 4–6 cm/kyr at the end of the MMCO, diminishing to 1.5–3 cm/kyr during the MMCT and the subsequent accumulation of the Port Campbell Limestone. KEY POINTS The Port Campbell Limestone is a stack of thin repetitive depositional cycles within cycles. The cyclicity is strongly correlated with orbital forcings—eccentricity and obliquity—and this is reflected in the geochemistry. Foraminiferal data suggest a depositional transition from outer shelf conditions in the Gellibrand Marl at ca 15 Ma to middle shelf environments in the lower part of the Port Campbell Limestone during the Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum (MMCO) at ca 14.24 Ma. The sequence was emergent for a brief but undetermined period at ca 13.2 Ma, corresponding with sharp changes in geochemical ratios. Three distinct geochemical signatures of provenance are evident in the Port Campbell Limestone sequence, including possible volcanogenic contributions with felsic sources.

Early Miocene coral reef-associated bryozoans from Colombia. Part II: “Ascophora” Cheilostomatida

AbstractBryozoans are common and diverse in fossil and modern coral reefs. However, studies of bryozoans in ancient reefs are generally limited, and even less is known about fossil bryozoan faunas associated with coral reefs in the Caribbean region. This is the second contribution describing the bryozoan assemblage from the early Miocene (Aquitanian) reefs of the Siamaná Formation in the La Guajira Peninsula, southern Caribbean. Here, we describe and illustrate 17 species of ascophoran-grade cheilostomes, including one new genus and three new species,Ditaxiporina colombianan. sp.,Poricella paulaen. sp., andCycloavicularia parvan. gen. n. sp. Of the remaining fourteen taxa left in open nomenclature, one is considered confer and three affinis to species previously described, one is identified at family level, and nine at genus level. The Siamaná bryozoan fauna differs in species and colony-form composition from those associated with other paleoenvironments from Oligocene and Miocene localities of North America, the Caribbean, and Brazil.UUID:http://zoobank.org/043eadcf-0e39-4c1b-b207-f7628d6b5c84