Examining abnormal Silurian trilobites from the Llandovery of Australia
Abnormal trilobites present insight into how arthropods with fully biomineralised exoskeletons recovered from injuries, genetic malfunctions, and pathologies. Records of abnormal Silurian trilobites in particular show an abundance of specimens with teratologies and a limited record of injuries. Here...
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| Format: | Članak |
| Jezik: | English |
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PeerJ Inc.
2022-11-01
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| Serija: | PeerJ |
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| Online pristup: | https://peerj.com/articles/14308.pdf |
| _version_ | 1827611479142039552 |
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| author | Russell D.C. Bicknell Patrick M. Smith |
| author_facet | Russell D.C. Bicknell Patrick M. Smith |
| author_sort | Russell D.C. Bicknell |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abnormal trilobites present insight into how arthropods with fully biomineralised exoskeletons recovered from injuries, genetic malfunctions, and pathologies. Records of abnormal Silurian trilobites in particular show an abundance of specimens with teratologies and a limited record of injuries. Here we expand the record of abnormal Silurian trilobites by presenting seven new abnormal specimens of Odontopleura (Sinespinaspis) markhami from the early Silurian (Llandovery, Telychian) Cotton Formation, New South Wales. We use these specimens to illustrate novel evidence for asymmetric distribution of pleural thoracic spine bases. These abnormal bases likely reflect genetic complications, resulting in morphologies that would unlikely have aided the fitness of abnormal individuals. In considering records of malformed Silurian trilobites more broadly, we propose that the largest trilobites may have been prey at this time. This indicates a possible change in the trophic position of trilobites when compared to Cambrian and Ordovician palaeoecosystems. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T08:06:56Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d6fbbd5f3bef4fc9b245b51ece9942ae |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2167-8359 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T08:06:56Z |
| publishDate | 2022-11-01 |
| publisher | PeerJ Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PeerJ |
| spelling | doaj.art-d6fbbd5f3bef4fc9b245b51ece9942ae2023-12-02T23:47:53ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592022-11-0110e1430810.7717/peerj.14308Examining abnormal Silurian trilobites from the Llandovery of AustraliaRussell D.C. Bicknell0Patrick M. Smith1Palaeoscience Research Centre, School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, AustraliaDepartment of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, AustraliaAbnormal trilobites present insight into how arthropods with fully biomineralised exoskeletons recovered from injuries, genetic malfunctions, and pathologies. Records of abnormal Silurian trilobites in particular show an abundance of specimens with teratologies and a limited record of injuries. Here we expand the record of abnormal Silurian trilobites by presenting seven new abnormal specimens of Odontopleura (Sinespinaspis) markhami from the early Silurian (Llandovery, Telychian) Cotton Formation, New South Wales. We use these specimens to illustrate novel evidence for asymmetric distribution of pleural thoracic spine bases. These abnormal bases likely reflect genetic complications, resulting in morphologies that would unlikely have aided the fitness of abnormal individuals. In considering records of malformed Silurian trilobites more broadly, we propose that the largest trilobites may have been prey at this time. This indicates a possible change in the trophic position of trilobites when compared to Cambrian and Ordovician palaeoecosystems.https://peerj.com/articles/14308.pdfAbnormalitiesTrilobitesPaleozoicTeratologySilurianOdontopleura (Sinespinaspis) markhami |
| spellingShingle | Russell D.C. Bicknell Patrick M. Smith Examining abnormal Silurian trilobites from the Llandovery of Australia PeerJ Abnormalities Trilobites Paleozoic Teratology Silurian Odontopleura (Sinespinaspis) markhami |
| title | Examining abnormal Silurian trilobites from the Llandovery of Australia |
| title_full | Examining abnormal Silurian trilobites from the Llandovery of Australia |
| title_fullStr | Examining abnormal Silurian trilobites from the Llandovery of Australia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Examining abnormal Silurian trilobites from the Llandovery of Australia |
| title_short | Examining abnormal Silurian trilobites from the Llandovery of Australia |
| title_sort | examining abnormal silurian trilobites from the llandovery of australia |
| topic | Abnormalities Trilobites Paleozoic Teratology Silurian Odontopleura (Sinespinaspis) markhami |
| url | https://peerj.com/articles/14308.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT russelldcbicknell examiningabnormalsiluriantrilobitesfromthellandoveryofaustralia AT patrickmsmith examiningabnormalsiluriantrilobitesfromthellandoveryofaustralia |