A possible Laurentian volchoviid ophiocistioid from the Katian of southwestern Ohio

Ausich, William and Thompson, Jeffrey (2021) A possible Laurentian volchoviid ophiocistioid from the Katian of southwestern Ohio. Journal of Paleontology, 95 (5), 1097-1098. (doi:10.1017/jpa.2021.28).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The Cincinnatian (Katian) of the Cincinnati Tri-State area is widely regarded as one of the most fossiliferous sections known (Meyer and Davis, 2009). Echinoderms from these strata include well-described asteroids, crinoids, cyclocystoids, edrioasteroids, glyptocystoids, mitrates, and ophiuroids. John Pope discovered a partially articulated echinoderm in float from the Fairview Formation that does not correspond to any known Cincinnatian echinoderm. Although mentioned in Ubaghs (1966, as a presumable personal communication from Pope, 1960), Haude and Langenstrassen (1976), Reich (2001), and Reich and Haude (2004), this specimen at the Cincinnati Museum Center (CMCPIP 51316) has neither been described nor illustrated; yet, these authors attributed it to Volchovia Hecker, 1938 in the Class Ophiocistioidea. Questions swirl around this fossil: what is its complete morphology; does it belong to Volchovia; whether or not it can be assigned to Volchovia, is it an ophiocistioid? The first step to understand this enigmatic echinoderm is to illustrate and describe the specimen, which is the objective of this note.

Text

JPA-TN-2020-0002.R2_Proof_hi - Accepted Manuscript

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