Phyllograptus Temporal range: Early Ordovician | |
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Phyllograptus species | |
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Genus: | Phyllograptus |
Phyllograptus is a graptolite genus of the order Graptoloidea, in the family Phyllograptidae.
Fossils of this genus have been found in the Early Ordovician (475-473 million years ago), in the sediments of Australia, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, China, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and United States. [1]
The normal length of a colony of these leaf-shaped animals could reach a length of 3.5 centimetres (1.4 in). They were passively mobile planktonic suspension feeders. [1] [2]
Phyllograptus species are excellent index fossils or guide fossils for identifying Ordovician rocks. [3]