A new Parastriatopora species (Anthozoa, Tabulata) from the Lower Devonian of Colle (Spain, Cantabrian Mountains)

 

Authors: May A

Published in: Bulletin of Geosciences, volume 80, issue 4; pages: 287 - 290; Received 5 January 2005; Accepted in revised form 29 June 2005;

Keywords: Anthozoa, biogeography, Lower Devonian, systematics, tabulate corals,

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Abstract

The paleontological collection of the Museo Geominero (Madrid) houses a new species of the tabulate coral Parastriatopora. It comes from the Lower Devonian of Colle (Prov. León) and probably originates from one of the biostromal levels in the upper part of the Valporquero Formation and the lower part of the Coladilla Formation (Upper Emsian). The new species, described under open nomenclature as Parastriatopora sp., is characterized primarily by its very large corallites and calices: the 5 to 7-cornered calices are 3.5-6.9 mm in diameter (mostly 5.5-6.0 mm). Furthermore, it shows very interesting paleobiogeographical relationships, because the morphologically closest related species is Parastriatopora gigantea (Knod 1908) from the Lower Devonian of Bolivia. Parastriatopora sp. could be an example of a close relationship between the Cantabrian Mountains and America during the Emsian.