Plumulites

Plumulites Temporal range: Tremadocian–Middle Devonian PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
A digital reconstruction of Plumulites bengstoni
Fossil of two articulated Plumulites bengstoni
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Annelida
Clade:	Pleistoannelida
Subclass:	Errantia
Order:	Phyllodocida
Clade:	† Machaeridia
Family:	† Plumulitidae Jell, 1979
Genus:	† Plumulites
Type species
Plumulites canadensis Woodward, 1889
Species
See text

Plumulites is an extinct genus of machaeridians, an extinct annelid group. ^[1]

Description

Plumulites is normally small animal, for example complete specimen of P. canadensis reached only 16.5 millimetres (0.65 in), and P. bengtsoni being 28 millimetres (1.1 in). ^{[1] [2]} However, several largest specimens probably reached around 15 centimetres (5.9 in), making Plumulites largest machaeridians ever known. ^{[3] [4]}

Fossils of Plumulites were mostly known from isolated sclerites, and originally considered as arthropod or an echinoderm. However, complete sclerite assemblages of P. richorum described in 1979 has shown that this animal is more likely to be annelid worm, the group which includes modern-day earthworm, leech and bristleworm. ^[5]

According to complete specimens, this animal is surrounded by pairs of outer and interior shell plates. ^{[1] [2] [5] [6]} Some of anterior outer and interior shell plates different in shape. ^[6] Specimen of P. bengtsoni shows soft tissue including parapodia and chaetae. ^[2]

Taxonomy

Preservation of jaw element of P. bengtsoni leads conclusion that machaeridians should be placed within the crown group of Phyllodocida. ^[7]

Species

As of 1929, more than 20 species have been described. ^[8] Subsequent studies have described many more species.

• P. canadensis Woodward, 1889 (type) Ottawa, Canada, Katian (Upper Ordovician) ^{[1] [8]}
• P. australisTalent, 1963 ^[9]
• P. bengtsoniVinther, Van Roy & Briggs, 2008 Fezouata Formation, Morocco, Upper Tremadocian (Lower Ordovician) ^[2]
• P. bohemicusBarrande, 1868 Bohemia, Czech Republic, Lower Ordovician ^[8]
• P. chikunensisKobayashi, 1934 Chikunsan shale (Jigunsan Formation), South Korea, Llandeilian (Middle Ordovician) ^{[10] [11]}
• "P". clarkiShaw, 1966 (=?P. mobergiClark, 1924) Highgate Formation, Vermont, USA, Lower Ordovician ^[12]
• P. comparBarrande, 1872 Bohemia, Czech Republic, Lower Ordovician ^[8]
• P. contariusBarrande, 1872 Bohemia, Czech Republic, Lower Ordovician ^[8]
• P. dalecarlicusMoberg, 1914 Scania, Sweden, Middle Ordovician ^[8]
• P. delicatusBarrande, 1872 Bohemia, Czech Republic, Lower Silurian ^[8]
• P. devonicusJ. M. Clarke, 1882 Hamilton group, New York, USA, Middle Devonian ^[8]
• P. discretusBarrande, 1872 Bohemia, Czech Republic, Lower Silurian ^[8]
• P. esthonicusWithers, 1921 Jewe Station, Esthonia, Middle Ordovician ^[8]
• P. eueidesHögström et al., 2008 Boda Limestone, Siljan district, Sweden, Lower Ordovician (Katian–Hirnantian) ^[3]
• P. folliculumBarrande, 1868 Bohemia, Czech Republic, Lower Ordovician ^[8]
• P. fraternusBarrande, 1872 Bohemia, Czech Republic, Middle Ordovician ^[8]
• P. gracillimusRingueberg, 1888 Rochester Shale, New York, USA, Middle Silurian ^[8]
• P. gumunsoensisChoi & Kim, 1989 Dumugol Formation, South Korea, Upper Tremadocian ^[13]
• P. kutscheriSchrank, 1978 Germany, Upper Wenlock Epoch (Silurian) ^[2]
• P. lamontiCandela & Crighton, 2017 Law Linn Formation, Pentland Hills, Scotland, Telychian (Silurian) ^[6]
• P. llanvirnensisWithers & Henry, 1926 Pembrokeshire, Wales, United Kingdoms, Skiddavian (Lower Ordovician) ^[8]
• P. malayensisKobayashi & Hamada, 1976 Pulau Langgon, Langkawi Islands, Malaysia, Upper Ordovician ^[10]
• P. minumusBarrande, 1872 Bohemia, Czech Republic, Lower Silurian ^[8]
• P. mitchelliR. Etheridge, 1890 Bowning Creek, New South Wales, Australia, ?Wenlock Epoch (Silurian) ^[8]
• P. mobergiT. H. Clark, 1924 Quebec, Canada, Lower Ordovician ^[8]
• P. ornatusChapman, 1910 Victoria, Australia, Melbournian (Silurian) ^[8]
• P. peachiNicholson & Etheridge, 1880 Ayrshire, Scotland, Ashgillian (Upper Ordovician)
• P. primusKobayashi, 1934 Dumugol Formation, South Korea, Upper Tremadocian ^{[10] [13]}
• P. pygmaeusMoberg, 1914 Dalarna, Sweden, Lower Silurian ^[8]
• P. rastritumMoberg, 1914 Dalarna, Sweden, Lower Silurian ^[8]
• P. regiusBarrande, 1872 Bohemia, Czech Republic, Middle-Upper Ordovician ^[8]
• P. richorumJell, 1979 Humevale Formation, Victoria, Australia, Early Devonian ^[5]
• P. ruskiniLamont, 1978 Wether Law Linn Formation, Pentland Hills, Scotland, Telychian (Silurian) ^[14]
• P. scoticusR. Etheridge, 1878 Balclatchie group, Ayrshire, Scotland, Caradocian (Upper Ordovician) ^[8]
• P. tafennaensisChauvel, 1967 Morocco, Caradoc (Upper Ordovician) and Tafilalt Biota, Morocco, Katian (Upper Ordovician) ^{[2] [4]}
• P. törnquistiMoberg, 1914 Dalarna, Sweden, Middle Ordovician ^[8]
• P. trentonensisWithers & Henry, 1926 Middle Trenton Beds, New York, USA, Middle Ordovician ^[8]
• P. yeringiaeChapman, 1910 Victoria, Australia, Yeringian (Silurian) ^[8]

References

1. Jakob Vinther & David Rudkin (2010). "The first articulated specimen of Plumulites canadensis (Woodward, 1889) from the Upper Ordovician of Ontario, with a review of the anterior region of Plumulitidae (Annelida: Machaeridia)". Palaeontology . 53 (2): 327–334. Bibcode:2010Palgy..53..327V. doi: 10.1111/j.1475-4983.2010.00938.x .
2. Vinther, Jakob; Van Roy, Peter; Briggs, Derek E. G. (2008). "Machaeridians are Palaeozoic armoured annelids" . Nature. 451 (7175): 185–188. Bibcode:2008Natur.451..185V. doi:10.1038/nature06474. ISSN   1476-4687. PMID   18185586. S2CID   4401508.
3. Högström, Anette E.S.; Ebbestad, Jan Ove R.; Suzuki, Yutaro (2009). "Armoured annelids and molluscs from the Upper Ordovician Boda Limestone, central Sweden" . GFF. 131 (3): 245–252. Bibcode:2009GFF...131..245H. doi:10.1080/11035890903189801. ISSN   1103-5897. S2CID   140672683.
4. Lefebvre, Bertrand; Van Roy, Peter; Zamora, Samuel; Gutiérrez-Marco, Juan Carlos; Nohejlová, Martina (2022-03-31). "The Late Ordovician Tafilalt Biota, Anti-Atlas, Morocco: a high-latitude perspective on the GOBE". Geological Society, London, Special Publications. 485 (1): 5–35. Bibcode:2022GSLSP.485....5L. doi:10.1144/sp485-2022-29. ISSN   0305-8719. S2CID   247351043.
5. Jell, Peter A. (1979). "Plumulites and the machaeridian problem" . Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology. 3 (4): 253–259. Bibcode:1979Alch....3..253J. doi:10.1080/03115517908527797. ISSN   0311-5518.
6. Candela, Y.; Crighton, W. R. B. (2017-01-27). "Addenda to the record of machaeridian shell plates in the Wether Law Linn Formation (Late Llandovery), Pentland Hills, Scotland". Scottish Journal of Geology. 53 (1): 35–39. Bibcode:2017ScJG...53...35C. doi:10.1144/sjg2016-006. ISSN   0036-9276. S2CID   132750137.
7. Parry, Luke A.; Edgecombe, Gregory D.; Sykes, Dan; Vinther, Jakob (2019-07-24). "Jaw elements in Plumulites bengtsoni confirm that machaeridians are extinct armoured scaleworms". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 286 (1907): 20191247. doi:10.1098/rspb.2019.1247. PMC   6661337 . PMID   31337310.
8. British Museum (Natural History).; History), British Museum (Natural; Withers, Thomas Henry (1926). Catalogue of the Machaeridia (Turrilepas and its allies) in the Department of Geology. London.
9. "Mindat.org". www.mindat.org. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
10. Kobayashi, Teiichi; Hamada, Takashi (1976). "Occurrences of the Machaeridia in Japan and Malaysia". Proceedings of the Japan Academy. 52 (7): 371–374. doi: 10.2183/pjab1945.52.371 .
11. Choi, Duck Keun; Lee, Dong-Chan (1992). "PLUMULITES FROM THE JIGUNSAN FORMATION (MIDDLE ORDOVICIAN) DONGJEOM AREA, KOREA". 고생물학회지 (in Korean). 8 (1): 52–58. ISSN   1225-0929.
12. Shaw, Alan B. (1966). "Paleontology of Northwestern Vermont. XII. Fossils from the Ordovician Highgate Formation". Journal of Paleontology. 40 (6): 1312–1330. ISSN   0022-3360. JSTOR   1301947.
13. Choi, Duck Keun; Kim, Keon Ho (1989). "Problematic Fossils from the Dumugol Formation(Lower Ordovician), Dongjeom Area, Korea". 지질학회지 (in Korean). 25 (4): 405–412. ISSN   0435-4036.
14. Candela, Yves; Crighton, William R. B. (2015-01-23). "Revision of Plumulites ruskini Lamont, and new data from the Silurian of the Pentland Hills, Scotland" . Scottish Journal of Geology. 51 (1): 31–42. Bibcode:2015ScJG...51...31C. doi:10.1144/sjg2014-053. ISSN   0036-9276. S2CID   131111779.

External links

• Data related to Plumulites canadensis at Wikispecies