Jurassic Crinoids Research Articles

SKELETONS OF SEIROCRINUS SUBANGULARISCRINOIDS (CRINOIDEA, ECHINODERMATA)(MILLER, 1821) FROM THE COLLECTION OFTHE NATURE EDUCATION CENTRE OF THEJAGIELLONIAN UNIVERSITY

The Nature Education Centre of the JagiellonianUniversity in Krakow has in its collection a spectacular fossil ofa Jurassic crinoid, in literature known as Seirocrinus subangularis(Miller). Only several museums in Central Europe can boast sucha perfectly preserved and complete specimen of Seirocrinus. Asseen against Polish museum collections the slab in questionis an outstanding object. That very form was a cosmopolitanand pseudoplanktonic crinoid species spread throughoutAsia, Europe, and Northern America, yet it has never beendocumented in Poland. The particular specimen reached Polandin the mid-19th century from Germany to enrich the collectionof the Mineralogical Cabinet. The paper presents the turbulenthistory of the slab with some dozen specimens of echinodermson it, the story which will shortly have a happy end, since itwill be permanently placed as a geological exhibit at the NatureEducation Centre of the Jagiellonian University.

Inverted Landforms of the Western Caucasus: Implications for Geoheritage, Geotourism, and Geobranding

Relief inversion is the result of an unusual interplay between landform evolution and peculiarities of geological settings. Recent fieldwork in Mountainous Adygeya in the western part of the Greater Caucasus mountains has enabled the identification of several inverted landforms. The Gud and Gudok mountains constitute a “classical” inverted landform with the top corresponding to the syncline’s core, which consists of relatively hard Middle Jurassic crinoid limestones. The Kabanya mountain, with the nearby branch of the Skalisty range, has a similar geological setting, although the hard Upper Jurassic carbonates that form the monocline and overlie the syncline also contribute to the preservation of the topographical high above the structural low. The northwestern segment of the Skazhenny range is formed of relatively soft Lower–Middle Jurassic shales, and its inversion results from the protection of the syncline’s core by capping Upper Jurassic carbonates. These landforms represent progressive, transitional, and regressive inversion, respectively. Their relative diversity and significance in local topography allow them to be classified as geomorphosites, i.e., important elements of the geoheritage of Mountainous Adygeya. Each of these has certain touristic potential, and a geotouristic route allowing the comprehension of these geomorphosites from several viewpoints is proposed. Climbing these mountains for closer examination may combine geotourism and adventure tourism. Additionally, the Gud and Gudok landform “symbolizing” the geodiversity of the study area can be used for branding local food products such as cheese, which is popular among visitors.

Fossil echinoderms from the Triassic and Jurassic of Ireland

An overview is provided of fossil echinoderm taxa recovered from the Jurassic (Lias Group) and Triassic (Penarth Group) of Ireland. Despite limited outcrop and generally poor exposure, at least 12 species are recorded (6 crinoids, 2 echinoids, 3 ophiuroids and one asteroid), with significant new material recovered from an early Hettangian lagerstätte. The crinoid Isocrinus angulatus (Fraas, 1858), omitted from an earlier Palaeontographical Society Monograph on Lower Jurassic crinoids, is described based on articulated material.

Isolation and characterization of the earliest taxon-specific organic molecules (Mississippian, Crinoidea): COMMENT

O’Malley et al. (2013) report the extraction and characterization of organic molecules from Mississippian crinoids. Chemical analyses of organic compounds of Paleozoic age can provide valuable information on ancient organisms, but are generally a challenging task requiring great caution in the treatment of samples and the interpretation of data. From the view of an organic geochemist, some statements require comment. The comparison of the fringelite pigments discovered by Blumer (1951, 1960) with hypericin is obsolete. In a revision of the structures (Wolkenstein et al., 2006), one of the fringelite pigments was identifi ed as hypericin. To avoid confusion, the closely related fossil crinoid pigments, rather, should be termed fossil hypericinoids. Reference should be clearly made that polycyclic quinones including hypericin have been proven in the Jurassic crinoid Liliocrinus and in the Triassic crinoid Carnallicrinus, and that early cementation of the stereom microstructure is an important factor for the preservation of organic material in fossil crinoids (Wolkenstein et al., 2006). O’Malley et al. give the impression that the crinoids shown in their fi gure 1 are from the Mississippian of Indiana. However, fi gure 1 actually shows a crinoid plate from the Mississippian Maynes Creek Formation at Le Grand, Iowa (Gahn and Baumiller, 2004). Although the fi gure shows an example of color differences among different crinoid species, it should be indicated that these crinoids are from a different locality from those used as samples. O’Malley et al. state that the crinoids they analyzed originate from two different localities in southern Indiana (Morgan and Monroe Counties). However, it is not indicated from which locality the individual samples originated. A detailed provenance is of particular relevance when comparing the mass spectra of only three crinoid samples (their fi gures 3A–3C). Moreover, analysis of three different samples is not suffi cient to support a taxon specifi city of organic molecules and to determine if these molecules indicate phylogenetic relationships as stated. To validate a correlation of the observed data with taxa, more than one sample of the same species should be analyzed. Another major concern is that crude extracts were analyzed, not isolated compounds as suggested in the title. Chromatographic separation is of crucial importance for the analysis of complex mixtures of unknown compounds, which are typically present in extracts from fossils. Without chromatographic separation, the spectroscopic properties of individual compounds cannot be correlated. For example, it is not possible to evaluate if a compound with a specifi c molecular mass also shows fl uorescence properties. Furthermore, crude organic extracts were obtained by extraction with organic solvents (acetone/methanol 4:1 and methanol), but in the legend of their fi gure 3, it is indicated that for excitation-emission matrix (EEM) spectroscopy, samples were analyzed in water. Considering the different solvent properties, it is rather unlikely that the mixture of compounds dissolved in water is identical to the mixture of compounds in the crude organic extract. O’Malley et al. state that the study specifi cally “seeks to determine whether the coloration distinction among fossil species results from individual crinoids possessing unique organic molecules” (p. 347). However, the ultraviolet-visible light spectra of the fossil samples (their fi gure 2) show that only very little absorbance occurs within the range of visible light (400–800 nm). The spectra thus indicate that the extracted fossil compounds are not responsible for distinctive coloration differences of the crinoids. EEM spectroscopy is generally used for characterization of dissolved organic matter in natural waters based on differences in the fl uorescence properties of broad groups of compounds (e.g., humic-like fl uorescence) (Coble, 1996), not for the determination of specifi c functional moieties. Comparing the EEM spectra in detail, signifi cant differences can be observed between the fossil crinoids and also with the reference compound, which do not necessarily support the presence of quinone-like compounds in the fossil samples. Using electrospray ionization time-of-fl ight (ESI-TOF) mass spectrometry for analysis of mixtures, it should be recognized that ESI is an ionization technique most suitable for the detection of chargeable and polar compounds and that suppression of ions may occur (Pramanik et al., 2002). Compounds occurring in trace amounts may give very intense signals if they ionize very well, whereas other compounds, even if they are abundant, may give no signal at all. Therefore, no relative abundances of compounds can be determined from ESI spectra of mixtures and the phrase “most abundant molecular species” (p. 348) is misleading. It is very diffi cult to interpret the ESI-TOF spectra in their fi gure 3 as

Vanishing ocean: how tethys reshaped the world by Dorrik Stow. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2010. No. of pages: xii + 300. Price: UK£16.99. ISBN 978-0-19-921428-0 (hardback).

Dorrik Stow has written an unusual book, the ‘biography’ of an ocean and one that no longer exists, at that. Geologists and non-geologists alike will enjoy this CSI-type exposition of what is no longer there based on the evidence, sometimes rich, more commonly slender, always fascinating, and found here and there in various corners of the globe. What is there is good. Stow writes well and engages the reader by blending his own field experiences into a story that is wide ranging. Indeed, this is the sort of clear text that would form an appropriate basis for a graduate seminar course, provided the students also read the primary references. Maps are well drawn and essential to the story, showing the changing geometry of Tethys with time. Other figures and photographs are fine, but I would like to have seen more of them. The quality of the paper is inadequate for good reproduction of images; I craved a section of high-quality art paper with well-produced photographs of key sites in colour. The author is, of course, a master at compiling compelling images from the field (Stow, 2005). And, while discussing illustrations, why is the Late Devonian mass extinction ignored in figure 7? I do have two quibbles with Vanishing Ocean, one minor and the other more major. My minor complaint is that Stow has failed to have his palaeontological facts checked, so he blunders more than once. For example, he states that the arthropod exoskeleton is composed of chiton (p. 63), and figures a Jurassic crinoid and Silurian trilobites which are ‘… typical of the Late Permian Tethys Ocean’ (p. 73). More annoyingly, Stow labours over ‘disproving’ that the end Cretaceous mass extinction was not the product of a bolide impact. I think the true fruit of extinction studies over the past 30+ years has been to show that major events commonly coincide with more than one environmental perturbation (postulated at least as long ago as Hoffman, 1989). Stow is willing to recognise ‘… a combination of environmental drivers’ (p. 185), but does not favour an impact as one of them. Discussions of mass extinctions have moved on from the ‘I'm right’ ‘No. I'm right’ state of argument, thank goodness. Rather, constructive debate of diverse and multiple lines of evidence, supported by increasingly sophisticated laboratory data and field observations, is the route to confident consensus. But, overall, my criticisms are minor. Vanishing Ocean is readable and informative, and is ably written to interest and entertain a wide audience. I enjoyed reading it and recommend it to you.

Crinoids from the Middle Jurassic (Bajocian–Lower Callovian) of Ardèche, France

Several Middle Jurassic outcrops in the Ardeche Department near La Voulte-sur-Rhone and St-Etienne-de-Boulogne are rich in the remains of crinoids, but these were known from surface collections only and were not described using present standards of systematics. This paper brings the taxonomic status of the previously described crinoids up to date, reassesses the systematic position of some of the species based on cups and describes new forms. Sampling and washing of bulk material from the Lower Bathonian of the La Pouza locality yielded nearly 100,000 crinoid ossicles. Among them are rare comatulids with the following recognized as new: Andymetragalei n. g., n. sp., Palaeocomaster messingi n. sp., Singillatimetra inordinata n. g., n. sp. and Solanocrinitesvoultensis n. sp. These forms supplement the meagre record of Middle Jurassic comatulids and indicate that this group radiated well before the Late Jurassic. The Cyrtocrinida constitute the bulk of the crinoids and they are dominated by Cyrtocrinus praenutans n. sp. from which nearly all parts of the skeleton are described in their morphological variability. The La Pouza site furnished the additional new cyrtocrinids, Praetetracrinus bathonicus n. sp. and Phyllocrinusvoultensis n. sp. The material also includes numerous remains of the isocrinids Isocrinus dumortieri (de Loriol), Balanocrinus dumortieride Loriol, Balanocrinus pacomeide Loriol and Balanocrinus inornatus (d’Orbigny), which are described in some detail, including brachials. From the Upper Bajocian–Lower Bathonian locality of Pont des Etoiles, Pentacrinites ausichi n. sp. and the cyrtocrinid Scutellacrinus tenuis n. g., n. sp. are new to science. The results demonstrate that the Middle Jurassic crinoids from the Ardeche are one of the important and diverse Mesozoic crinoid faunas. Some forms bridge the gap between the Early Jurassic and the Late Jurassic hardground faunas of cyrtocrinids. Cyrtocrinus praenutans n. sp., a form similar to Cyrtocrinus nutans (Goldfuss) from the Oxfordian, is described as a separate species despite some overlapping phenotypic variability of cups and columnals. Pathological deformations on all types of ossicles of C. praenutans n. sp. are ascribed to the epizoan commensal Oichnus paraboloides Bromley. Different species are dominant at the different Bathonian localities, namely C. praenutans n. sp. at La Pouza and Phyllocrinus fenestratus (Dumortier) and Lonchocrinus dumortieri (de Loriol) at La Clapouze. Preservation and rock formation of the Upper Bajocian–Lower Bathonian Isocrinus nicoleti (Thurmann) at Pont des Etoiles suggests that this form lived in rather shallow and turbulent water. The dominance of cyrtocrinids and the presence of all growth stages and parts of the skeleton at La Pouza and La Clapouze suggest a deeper palaeoenvironment, with some transport of the ossicles.

The occurrence of the pseudoplanktonic crinoidsPentacrinitesandSeirocrinusfrom the Early Jurassic Toyora Group, western Japan

Abstract. We document the occurrence of three species of Jurassic crinoids from the Lower Jurassic Toyora Group (Yamaguchi Prefecture), western Japan, belonging to the genera Pentacrinites and Seirocrinus. The former is found for the first time in Japan. This find extends the range of Pentacrinites into Eastern Eurasia. These species can be confidently assigned to Pentacrinites dichotomus (McCoy, 1848), P. cf. doreckae Simms (1989), and Seirocrinus subangularis (Miller, 1821). Pentacrinites and Seirocrinus are well known genera in the Lower Jurassic of Europe, with identical species occurring in the British Lias of Yorkshire and the Posidonienschiefer of southern Germany. Furthermore, previous studies have established that the taphonomy, sedimentology and palaeoenvironmental context of the Toyora Group, at least in the Nishinakayama Formation, are comparable to those of the European Boreal and Tethyan shallow seas including the occurrence of oxygen-depleted bottom conditions. Thus, the paraautochthonous p...

Discovery and preparation of a large mass of articulated Early Jurassic crinoids from Black Ven (Dorset and East Devon Coast World Heritage Site, south-west England)

Early Jurassic marine mudrocks on south-west England's Dorset and East Devon Coast World Heritage Site are well known as a source of spectacularly preserved examples of the fossil crinoid Pentacrinites fossilis Blumenbach. This paper outlines the geological and palaeobiological contexts of a recent find, and the measures taken for its preparation, conservation and preservation.

The palaeoecology of two Scottish encrinites: Jurassic crinoid assemblages from the Trotternish Peninsula, Isle of Skye, Scotland

Synopsis Despite a long history of investigation, articulate crinoids from the Jurassic of Scotland have not received great attention compared to their counterparts in Southern England or continental Europe; this is thought to be largely due to poor preservation. Two examples of ‘local’ encrinites (rocks almost entirely composed of crinoids debris), one from the Pliensbachian and the other from the Aalenian/Bajocian from the Isle of Skye, are shown to consist of columnals of Hispidocrinus cf. schlumbergeri and Balanocrinus donovani respectively. They represent local encrinites that have been deposited parautochthonously; one in a proximal, and the other in a more offshore low energy environment. This demonstrates that even limited encrinite material can not only be assigned systematically, but can also be used to reconstruct the original palaeoenvironments that the crinoids inhabited.

The discovery of Isocrinus cf. robustus from the Lias Group (Lower Jurassic) near Dunrobin Castle, Sutherland, Scotland

A single stem section (pluricolumnal) belonging to a post-Palaeozoic crinoid (sea lily) is reported from a small outcrop of Lower Jurassic Lias Group strata exposed in low cliff near Dunrobin Castle. This is the first Jurassic crinoid recorded from Eastern Scotland and the small fragment has enough diagnostic characters to be assigned to the species Isocrinus cf. robustus; a crinoid found commonly in the Lower Jurassic of England. The Scottish form collected has unusual morphology that is atypical of the genus.

Palaeoecology of Jurassic encrinites: Reconstructing crinoid communities from the Western Interior Seaway of North America

Jurassic crinoid communities in North America are poorly known. However, encrinites (rocks chiefly composed of crinoid debris) are surprisingly common in North America, and represent some of the best examples of post-Palaeozoic crinoid accumulations. These rocks are highly significant for understanding the ecology of early isocrinid crinoids, and provide an insight into the wider crinoid communities of North America. Within this reanalysis of Jurassic crinoids of the Western Interior Seaway, a number of non-endemic forms are reported, together with some highly specialized crinoids. Encrinites are varied, with distinct marine and lagoonal communities recognized. These ecological associations are comparable to those seen in the European Jurassic, with many of the classic European genera being present. This new data, and existing data from the Jurassic shallow seas of Europe, demonstrates that crinoid distribution patterns are largely facies influenced while geographical factors are of limited importance. Even within the same region, taxa in lower energy offshore facies contrast strongly with those found in more restricted facies. However, very similar crinoid communities characterize comparable facies in North America and Europe.

Isolated Ideas: Crinoid Literature of the Sixteenth Century

The first published accounts of the class Crinoidea (phylum Echinodermata) were from the latter half of the sixteenth century, during which seven or eight works were published. Because this was long before the establishment of modern systematic nomenclature by Linnaeus in 1758, this literature has been largely ignored. The first published work on crinoids was by Agricola in 1546, and the first illustrations of crinoids were by Gessner in 1565-1566. Crinoids were mentioned in these early publications as descriptions of objects dug from the earth, objects that had medicinal uses, and description of collections. The perceived medicinal use of fossil crinoids may have been an important factor for the attention that they received in sixteenth century publications. Little continuity existed from one author to the next, despite communications and mentor-student relationships. During this century, living and fossil crinoids were not allied, neither one was correctly interpreted with living comatulid crinoids (considered starfish), and fossil crinoid columnals were considered inanimate objects. At the close of the sixteenth century, circular and pentalobate columnals and pluricolumnals were related to one another even though they were categorized with an artificial classification scheme, the proposed name for pentalobate pluricolumnals is the valid name today for the Jurassic crinoid Pentacrinus, and living comatulid crinoids were regarded as echinoderms.

Middle Nineteenth-Century Crinoid Studies Of Thomas Austin, Sr. And Thomas Austin, Jr.: Newly Discovered Unpublished Materials

Thomas Austin, Sr. (1794-1881) and to a lesser extent his son Thomas Austin, Jr. (1817-before 1881) are recognized as important early students of both Carboniferous and Jurassic crinoids. However, the extent of their understanding of crinoids was not appreciated until the recent discovery of unpublished materials of Austin, Sr., including a manuscript dated 1855, plates indicating the intended continuation of their never finished 1843-1849 systematic monograph, and photographs of fossil crinoids.Within at most three and one-half decades after Johann Samuel Miller (1779-1830) first named the class Crinoidea in 1821, Austin, Sr. accurately summarized the broad outline of crinoid evolutionary history. Furthermore, Austin had a post-natural-historical interpretation of fossil crinoids. Fossil crinoids were not just ancient organisms to be described and classified, but Austin tried to interpret the biology of these fossils. Furthermore, he considered questions of taphonomy, functional morphology, paleoecology, processes controlling evolutionary trends, and crinoid deposits—still topics of interest to paleobiologists 150 years later; and he also discussed crinoid "evolution" and extinction. Other discussion is present on the history of crinoid studies from a middle-1800's perspective and on the superstitious and medicinal uses of crinoid fossils.But fain Saint Hilda's nuns would learn If, on a rock by Lindisfarne, Saint Cuthbert sits, and toils to frame The sea-born beads that bear his name: Such tales had Whitby's fishers told, And said they might his shape behold, And hear his anvil sound; A deaden'd clang,-a huge dim form Seen but, and heard, when gathering storm And night were closing round. But this, as tale of idle fame, The nuns of Lindisfarne disclaim.

Epi‐ and endobiontic organisms on Late Jurassic crinoid columns from the Negev Desert, Israel: Implications for co‐evolution

Columns of the articulate crinoids Millericrinus and Apiocrinites from the Upper Jurassic (Upper Callovian) Zohar and Matmor formations of the Negev Desert of Israel display abundant encrusting organisms of about ten species, as well as diverse trace fossils produced by endobionts. Pluricolumnals were colonized by epi- and endobiontic organisms both during life and post-mortem. Skeletonized encrusting organisms include abundant ostreid bivalves (which evidently colonized both live and dead crinoid columnals), two types of serpulid worms, encrusting foraminifera, three species of bryozoans, and small encrusting sclerosponges. Several types of borings are present: Trypanites (possibly produced by sipunculids), Gastrochaenolites (crypts of boring lithophagid bivalves), elliptical barnacle? borings, and channel-like annelid? borings. In addition, approximately 16% of the pluricolumnals display circular parabolic embedment pits assignable to the ichnogenus Tremichnus. They are associated with substantial deformation of the containing columnals and were probably the work of host-specific ectoparasitic organisms. Discovery of Tremichnus on Jurassic crinoids extends the range of this trace by almost 100 million years, providing evidence for one of the longest-ranging host-parasite interactions documented thus far (over 200 million years). The relationship of epibionts to the Jurassic crinoids thus ranged from simple utilization of dead hard substrate to probable opportunistic commensalism in forms that colonized the live upright stems, as in some oysters, through host-specific parasitism in the case of Tremichnus.

Late Jurassic crinoids from Sudak environs (Crimea)

Late Jurassic crinoids from Sudak environs (Crimea)

British Lower Jurassic Crinoids

British Lower Jurassic Crinoids

Patterns of evolution among lower Jurassic crinoids

The crinoid families Isocrinidae and Pentacrinitidae are well represented in the British Lower Jurassic, allowing a detailed investigation of their evolution at this time. The pseudopelagic pentacrinitids diverged from the benthic isocrinids during the Triassic. Seirocrinus arose from Pentacrinites through hyper‐morphosis prior to the start of the Jurassic but both genera subsequently show extreme evolutionary conservatism, perhaps attributable to constraints imposed by their unusual life‐style. From a single species in the Hettangian, the benthic isocrinids diversified in the Sinemurian and Carixian. A “central lineage”;, comprising three species of Chladocrinus, evolved along a peramorphocline by “intermittent anagenesis”;, prolonged periods of evolutionary stasis punctuated by short periods of gradualistic change. Two main offshoots, Balanocrinus and Hispidocrinus gen. nov., represent shifts into new habitats. Balanocrinus arose through progenesis, with subsequent evolution along a paedomorphocline, wh...

A new American Jurassic crinoid

A new American Jurassic crinoid

On some new or little-known Jurassic Crinoids

The fine collection of Oolitic fossils which was made by the late Mr. William Walton, of Bath, and was purchased some years ago by the University of Cambridge, contains a very remarkable series of specimens of a Crinoid from the Great oolite of Lansdown, a well-known hill at Bath. Its occurrence seems to have been first recorded (though not first noted) in the year 1828 by the late Dr. J.E. Gray, who made a curious error with regard to this geological horizon, stating it to have been found in the Lias. He named the type Apiocrinites Prattii , and described it as intermediate in character between the A. ellipticus and A. rotundus of Miller. Some years after the publication (1821) of the well-known work on Crinoids by the last-named author, some specimens of this species were shown to him by the Rev. H. Jelly, who states that Miller “was unable to satisfy his own mind as to their true nature and history.” in the year 1833 a semipopular illustrated account of these fossils was published by Mr. Jelly, and about the same time they were redescribed by Goldfuss, with the aid of some excellent figures, under the name of A. obconicus . he had, however , smaller series of specimens than those at Jelly's disposal, some of which now form part of the Walton collection; and the great peculiarity of the type, viz. the very variable length of the stem, which had been previously noted by Jelly, did not attract his attention.