| Ceratarges Temporal range: | |
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| Ceratarges sp. | |
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| Genus: | †Ceratarges Gürich, 1901 |
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Ceratarges was a genus of lichid Trilobite from the Middle Devonian to late Devonian. [1] It lived in what is now western Europe and Morocco. [1] [2] [3] [4]
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era during the Phanerozoic eon, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the preceding Silurian period at 419.2 million years ago (Ma), to the beginning of the succeeding Carboniferous period at 358.9 Ma. It is named after Devon, South West England, where rocks from this period were first studied.
Trilobites are extinct marine arthropods that form the class Trilobita. Trilobites form one of the earliest known groups of arthropods. The first appearance of trilobites in the fossil record defines the base of the Atdabanian stage of the Early Cambrian period and they flourished throughout the lower Paleozoic before slipping into a long decline, when, during the Devonian, all trilobite orders except the Proetida died out. The last extant trilobites finally disappeared in the mass extinction at the end of the Permian about 251.9 million years ago. Trilobites were among the most successful of all early animals, existing in oceans for almost 270 million years, with over 22,000 species having been described.
Eldredgeops rana is a species of trilobite from the middle Devonian period. Their fossils are found chiefly in the northeastern United States, and southwestern Ontario.
Dalmanites is a genus of trilobite in the order Phacopida. They lived from the Late Ordovician to Middle Devonian.
Terataspis is a comparatively huge, 60 centimetre long lichid trilobite genus from the Early Devonian, about 397 million years ago. It lived in a shallow sea in what is now New York State and Ontario. No whole specimens have been found, only disarticulated fragments of its exoskeleton, but enough fragments have been found to allow researchers to form reconstructions of the whole animal. The genus only contains one species, T. grandis.
Bellacartwrightia is a relatively uncommon genus of phacopid trilobite, found in the mid-Devonian Hamilton Group of New York state, mainly in strata exposed near Lake Erie just west of Buffalo. This trilobite is usually about 1.5" to 2" long. A very similar trilobite from the Devonian of Morocco is still sold as Metacanthina, but considerable research is still being done on Moroccan trilobites.
Kainops is a genus of trilobites from the family Phacopidae, order Phacopida. It can be distinguished from Paciphacops by the greater number of facets to the eye. The form of the furrow between the palpebral area and the palpebral lobe also distinguishes Kainops from the genera Paciphacops and Viaphacops.
Eldredgeops is a genus of trilobites in the order Phacopida, family Phacopidae, known from the late Middle and earliest Upper Devonian of Morocco and the USA.
Drotops is a genus of trilobites from the order Phacopida, family Phacopidae that lived during the Eifelian of the Middle Devonian. It was described by Struve in 1990 under type species Drotops megalomanicus. Their fossils are found in present-day Morocco, specifically the Maïder Region located South West of Erfoud.
Erbenochile is a genus of spinose phacopid trilobite, of the family Acastidae, found in Lower to Middle Devonian age rocks from Algeria and Morocco. Originally described from an isolated pygidium, the first complete articulated specimen of E. erbeni revealed the presence of extraordinarily tall eyes:
"Straight-sided towers of lenses... with [up to] 18 lenses in a vertical file"
Cyphaspis is a genus of small trilobite that lived from the Late Ordovician to the Late Devonian. Fossils have been found in marine strata in what is now Europe, Africa and North America. Various species had a compact body, and a large, bulbous glabellum. Many species had long spines arranged similarly to closely related genera, such as Otarian, Otarionella, Chamaeleoaspis, and Namuropyge.
Boeckops is a genus of trilobites in the order Phacopida, which existed in what is now the Czech Republic. It was described by Chlupac in 1972, and the type species is Boeckops boecki, which was originally described as Phacops boecki by Hawle and Corda in 1847. Boeckops is also been discriped from the lower Devonian of Morocco and Algeria. The Genus Boeckops is interpreted as intermediate from between the traditional genus concept of Phacops and Reedops. The Genus Boeckops is regarded as problematic or difficult by McKellar et Chatterton 2009.
Acanthopyge is an extinct genus of lichid trilobite that lived during the Devonian. Very few A. consanguinea from the Devonian of Oklahoma have been found, and only a handful of complete specimens from Morocco, and many so-called Acanthopyge-specimens from Morocco are fake.
Cordania is an extinct genus of trilobites that lived from the Early to Middle Devonian.
Morocconites malladoides is an average size trilobite, which lived during the Devonian period, in what is now southern Morocco. This species is assumed to be a close relative of Acastoides. The most conspicuous feature is the very long upcurved frontal medial spine, a bit like an avocet bill. It is the only known species in this genus.
Odontopleurida is an order of very spinose trilobites closely related to the trilobites of the order Lichida. Some experts group the Odontopleurid families, Odontopleuridae and Damesellidae, within Lichida. Odontopleurids tend to have convex, bar-shaped cephalons, and lobed, knob-shaped glabella that extend to, or almost to the anterior margin. Many, if not almost all odontopleurids have long spines that are derived either from the margins of the exoskeleton, or from granular or tubercular ornamentation, or both. Many odontopleurids are so spinose so as to be described as having "spines on (their) spines." Odontopleurids have 8 to 13 thoracic segments, with Odontopleuridae odontopleurids having no more than 10, and Damesellidae odontopleurids having no more than 13. The pygidium tends to be very small, and invariably has long spines emanating from it in all known genera.
Lichas is a genus of lichid trilobites from Ordovician-Devonian-aged marine strata of Europe and Morocco.
Gerastos is a genus of proetid trilobite in the family Proetidae that lived between the Pragian and Eifelian of the Lower-Middle Devonian, spanning approximately 21 million years.
The geology of Morocco formed beginning up to two billion years ago, in the Paleoproterozoic and potentially even earlier. It was affected by the Pan-African orogeny, although the later Hercynian orogeny produced fewer changes and left the Maseta Domain, a large area of remnant Paleozoic massifs. During the Paleozoic, extensive sedimentary deposits preserved marine fossils. Throughout the Mesozoic, the rifting apart of Pangaea to form the Atlantic Ocean created basins and fault blocks, which were blanketed in terrestrial and marine sediments—particularly as a major marine transgression flooded much of the region. In the Cenozoic, a microcontinent covered in sedimentary rocks from the Triassic and Cretaceous collided with northern Morocco, forming the Rif region. Morocco has extensive phosphate and salt reserves, as well as resources such as lead, zinc, copper and silver.
The Vireux-Molhain national nature reserve (RNN104) is a national nature reserve of geological and paleontological interest. It is located in the Pointe de Givet, department of Ardennes, on the border between France and Belgium. It covers an area of 1.82 ha. The site is known as Customs Wall as it is near an old customs post. This outcrop of Middle Devonian shale is notable for the quantity and good state of preservation of its fossils. Trilobites are well-represented.
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