Soft-part preservation in a bivalved arthropod from the Late Ordovician of Wales

Page, A. A. and Wilby, P. R. and Williams, M. and Vannier, J. and Davies, J. R. and Waters, R. A. and Zalasiewicz, J. A. (2010) Soft-part preservation in a bivalved arthropod from the Late Ordovician of Wales. Geological magazine, 147 (2). pp. 242-252. DOI 10.1017/S0016756809990045

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Abstract

A new component of the Early Palaeozoic arthropod fauna is described from a monospecific accumulate of carapaces in a Late Ordovician (Katian) hemipelagic mudstone from the Cardigan district of southwest Wales (UK). Its non-biomineralized carapace is preserved as a carbonaceous residue, as is more labile anatomy (soft-parts) including the inner lamella and sub-ovate structures near its antero-dorsal margin, which we interpret to be putative eyes. The depositional context and associated fauna indicate that the arthropods inhabited an area of deep water and high primary productivity above a pronounced submarine topography. The preserved density of carapaces suggests the arthropods may have congregated into shoals or been transported post-mortem into depressions which acted as detritus traps. The accumulate provides a rare example of soft-part preservation in hemipelagic mudstones and highlights the role of organic material as a locus for authigenic mineralization during metamorphism.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	09AREP; IA58;
Subjects:	04 - Palaeobiology
Divisions:	04 - Palaeobiology
Journal or Publication Title:	Geological magazine
Volume:	147
Page Range:	pp. 242-252
Identification Number:	10.1017/S0016756809990045
Depositing User:	Sarah Humbert
Date Deposited:	16 Feb 2009 13:03
Last Modified:	23 Jul 2013 10:08
URI:	http://eprints.esc.cam.ac.uk/id/eprint/573

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