Exceptional new fossil of Siphonophrentis gigantea
Rugose Corals, often referred to as Horn Coral, are an extinct order of stony corals in the phylum Cnidaria . They lived from the Ordivician period to the end of the Permian period, and can be found worldwide. A new fossil of Siphonophrentis gigantea , a species of Rugosa in the family Streptelasmat...
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| Format: | Other/Unknown Material |
| Language: | unknown |
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PeerJ
2018
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| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.7287/peerj.preprints.27282 https://peerj.com/preprints/27282.pdf https://peerj.com/preprints/27282.html https://peerj.com/preprints/27282.xml |
| Summary: | Rugose Corals, often referred to as Horn Coral, are an extinct order of stony corals in the phylum Cnidaria . They lived from the Ordivician period to the end of the Permian period, and can be found worldwide. A new fossil of Siphonophrentis gigantea , a species of Rugosa in the family Streptelasmatidae , has been recovered from the Devonian strata of the Lucas Formation. The fossil gives clues towards the paleobiology of Siphonophrentis , revealing it to have likely anchored itself to the sea bed in the ocean depths. Siphonophrentis gigantea likely had no relationship with Zooxanthellae , a kind of Dinoflagellate that gives modern extant coral their colour and allows them to photosynthesize. These single celled organisms appear to be absent in Siphonophrentis , and it instead received nutrients from a rich amount of biological debris that fell into its habitat. Further comparisons can be made between Siphonophrentis and the extant, cold-water coral Lophelia pertusa. |
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