Lunostoma
Lunostoma is an extinct genus of bryozoans which existed during the middle Devonian of what is now Germany, precisely from the Gerolstein syncline. It was described by Andrej Ernst, Paul D. Taylor, Jan Bohatý and Patrick N. Wyse Jackson in 2012, and the type species is L. pulchra.[1]
| Lunostoma | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Order: | Cryptostomata |
| Suborder: | Rhabdomesina |
| Family: | Rhomboporidae |
| Genus: | Lunostoma Ernst et al., 2012 |
Morphology
Lunostoma was a small animal, branches being about 1.3 mm wide.[1] It is unique among Rhabdomesina bryozoans in featuring "scutes", crescent-shaped structures on the proximal side of apertures.[1] The function of these structures, which resemble the lunaria of cystoporate bryozoans, is unclear, and it is possibly an example of convergent evolution.[1] Otherwise it is similar to Saffordotaxis.
References
- Andrej Ernst; Paul D. Taylor; Jan Bohatý; Patrick N. Wyse Jackson (2012). "Homeomorphy in Lunostoma, a new Middle Devonian cryptostome bryozoan". Paläontologische Zeitschrift. in press. doi:10.1007/s12542-011-0127-8.
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