The Boothiaspidinae, a new agnathan subfamily (Heterostraci, Cyathaspididae) from the late Silurian and Early Devonian of the western United States and the Canadian Arctic

• Published in: Journal of Paleontology
• Main Author: David K. Elliott
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: The Paleontological Society 2016
• Subjects: Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1017/jpa.2016.113

Three new species of the new genus Phyllonaspis are described from Early Devonian localities in the western United States. Phyllonaspis laevis, P. serratus, and P. taphensis are broad, flattened cyathaspids with lateral brims and fine dermal ornament, that show a close relationship to the cyathaspids Boothiaspis and Alainaspis from the late Silurian and Early Devonian of the Canadian Arctic. These taxa are here accommodated within the new subfamily Boothiaspidinae within the family Cyathaspididae. This relationship supports previous evidence of faunal connection between these two areas and indicates dispersal around the Old Red Sandstone Continent from a center in the Canadian Arctic. Isolated oral plates allow a reconstruction of the oral cover and increase our knowledge of the range of oral structures in this family.