Hostname: page-component-7c8c6479df-24hb2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-03-28T13:10:28.735Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Llandoverian (Early Silurian) radiolarians from the Road River Formation of east-central Alaska and the new family Haplotaeniatumidae

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 May 2016

Mun-Zu Won
Affiliation:
Department of Marine Science, Pusan National University, Pusan 609-735, Korea
Robert B. Blodgett
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331
V. Nestor
Affiliation:
Tallinn Technical University, Institute of Geology, 10143 Tallinn, Estonia

Abstract

Well-preserved Early Silurian radiolarians were recovered from siliceous rock fragments contained in a limestone boulder from the Road River Formation, Yukon River area, east-central Alaska. The radiolarians represent five genera, one of which, Parasecuicollacta, is new, and 17 species, nine of which are new: Secuicollacta magnitesta, S. tatondukensis, S. parvitesta, S. alaskensis, Parasecuicollacta bipola, P. hexactina, P. multispinosa, P. nannoglobosa, and Diparvapila pygmaea. Among the 17 species, 11 belong to the family Rotasphaeridae. The ectopically placed spicule, which is the diagnostic characteristic of the subfamily Secuicollactiniinae within the family Haplentactiniidae, is shown to be one of the primary units, a diagnostic feature of the family Rotasphaeridae. Three species are assigned to the family Haplotaeniatumidae, which is newly established in this paper. The family is characterized by the concentric and spiral arrangement of shell with a proloculus and commonly the presence of a pylome, and by the absence of an internal spicule. Several other taxa are extremely rare and are of uncertain taxonomic position. This fauna is characterized by very plentiful rotasphaerids, whereas all the other radiolarian taxa are very rare.

The Road River fauna is similar to that from the Cherry Spring Chert of Nevada, thought to be late Rhuddanian based on a sparse graptolite fauna, and is very similar to an unreported Early Silurian Canadian Arctic fauna, whose stratigraphic range based on the graptolite fauna is within the early Telychian. Conodonts, chitinozoans, scolecodonts, and graptolites were also recovered from the siliceous rock fragments. Five genera and seven species of chitinozoans, four genera and five species of conodonts, and two uncertain taxa of graptolites were identified. Their biostratigraphy indicates that the Alaskan radiolarian fauna belongs to the upper Aeronian to lower Telychian of the Llandoverian.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Paleontological Society

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Afanas'Eva, M. S. 1986. Radiolarians of the family Pylentonemidae. Paleontologicheskiy Zhurnal, 3:2235. (In Russian)Google Scholar
Armstrong, H. A. 1990. Conodonts from the Upper Ordovician-Lower Silurian carbonate platform of north Greenland. Gronlands Geologiske Undersøgelse Bulletin, 159, 151 p.Google Scholar
Brabb, E. E. 1967. Stratigraphy of the Cambrian and Ordovician rocks of east-central Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 559-A, 30 p.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brabb, E. E., and Churkin, M. Jr. 1969. Geologic map of the Charley River quadrangle, east-central Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations Series Map I-573, scale 1:250,000.Google Scholar
Branson, E. B., and Mehl, M. G. 1933. Conodont studies. University of Missouri Studies, 8(1):1349.Google Scholar
Branson, E. B., and Branson, C. C. 1947. Lower Silurian conodonts from Kentucky. Journal of Paleontology, 21(6):549556.Google Scholar
Churkin, M. Jr., and Brabb, E. E. 1965. Ordovician, Silurian, and Devonian biostratigraphy of east-central Alaska. American Association of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin, 49(2):172185.Google Scholar
Cooper, B. J. 1976. Multielement conodonts from the St. Clair limestone (Silurian) of southern Illinois. Journal of Paleontology, 50(2):205217.Google Scholar
Cramer, F. H. 1967. Chitinozoans of a composite section of Upper Llandoverian to basal Lower Gedinnian sediments in northern Leon, Spain. Bulletin de la Societe Belge de Geologie [Bulletin van de Vereniging voor Geologie], 75:69129.Google Scholar
Deflanadre, G. 1963. Pylentonema, nouveau genre de Radiolaire du Viséen-Sphaerellaire ou Nassellaire? Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences, Paris, 257:39813984.Google Scholar
Dover, J. H. 1992. Geologic map and fold-and-thrust-belt interpretation of the southeastern part of the Charley River Quadrangle, east-central Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations Series Map I-1942, scale 1:100,000.Google Scholar
Dumitrica, P., Caridroit, M., and De Wever, P. 2000. Archaeospicularia, ordre nouveau de radiolaires:une nouvelle étape pour la classification des radiolaries du Paléozoique inférieur. Comptes rendus de l'Academie des Sciences, 330:563569.Google Scholar
Dufka, P. 1992. Lower Silurian chitinozoans of the Prague Basin (Barrandian, Czechoslovakia)—preliminary results. Revue de Micropaleontologie, 35(2):117126.Google Scholar
Ehrenberg, C. G. 1838. über der Bildung der Kreidefelsen und des Kreidemergels druch unsichtbare Organismen. Abhandlungen der Königlichen Akademie des Wissenschaften zu Berlin, Jahrgang 1838:59147.Google Scholar
Ehrenberg, C. G. 1875. Fortsetzung der mikrogeologischen Studien als Gesammt-Uebersicht der mikroskopischen Palälontolgie gleichartig analysirter Gebirgsarten der Erde, mit specieller Rücksicht auf den Polycystinen-Mergel von Barbados. Aus den Abhandlungen der Königlichen Akademie des Wissenschaften zu Berlin, Jahrgang 1875:1226.Google Scholar
Eisenack, A. 1931. Neue Mikrofossilien des baltischen Silurs. I. Palaeontologische Zeitschrift, 13:74118.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eisenack, A. 1932. Neue Mikrofossilen des baltischen Silurs. II. Palaeontologische Zeitschrift, 14:257277.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eisenack, A. 1937. Neue Mikrofossilien des baltischen Silurs. IV. Palaeontologische Zeitschrift, 9:217243.Google Scholar
Eisenack, A. 1955. Neue Chitinozoen aus dem Silur des Baltikums und dem Devon der Eifel. Senckenbergiana Lethaea, 36(5–6):311319.Google Scholar
Eisenack, A. 1959. Neotypen baltischer Silur-Chitinozoen und neue Arten. Neues Jahrbuch fuer Geologie und Palaeontologie, 108(1):120.Google Scholar
Eisenack, A. 1962. Neotypen baltischer Silur-Chitinozoen und neue Arten. Neues Jahrbuch fuer Geologie und Palaeontologie, Abhandlungen, 114:291316.Google Scholar
Furutani, H. 1990. Middle Paleozoic radiolarians from Fukuji area, Gifu Prefecture, central Japan. Journal of Earth Sciences, Nagoya University, 37:156.Google Scholar
Goodbody, Q. H. 1986. Wenlock Palaeoscenidiidae and Entactiniidae (Radiolaria) from the Cape Phillips Formation of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Micropaleontology, 32(2):129157.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goto, H., Umeda, M., and Ishiga, H. 1992. Late Ordovician radiolarians from the Lachlan Fold belt, southeastern Australia. Memoirs of the Faculty of Science, Shimane University, 26:145170.Google Scholar
Kozur, H. W. 1996. Well-preserved Tredomacian primitive Radiolaria from the Windfall Formation of the Antelope Range, Eureka County, Nevada, U.S.A. Geologisch-Palaeontologisch Mitteilungen Innsbruck, 21:245271.Google Scholar
Kurihara, T, and Sashida, K. 2000. Early Silurian (Llandoverian) radiolarians from the Ise area of the Hida “Gaien” Belt, central Japan. Paleontological Research, Volume 4, no. 2, pp. 147162.Google Scholar
Li, H. 1994. Middle Silruian Radiolarian from Keerhada, Xinjiang. Acta Micropalaeontologica Sinica, 11(2):259272.Google Scholar
Macdonald, E. W. 1998. Llandovery Secuicollactinae and Rotasphaeridae (Radiolaria) from the Cape Phillips Formation, Cornwallis Island, Arctic Canada. Journal of Paleontology, 72(4):585604.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Malez, J., and Reich, M. 1997. Radiolarians and sponge spicules from the Spirogratus turriculatus zone (Llandovery, Silurian) of the Siljan district, Dalarna (Sweden). Greifswalder Geowissenschaftliche Beitrage, 4:101111.Google Scholar
Mccracken, A. D. 1991. Taxonomy and biostratigraphy of Llandovery (Silurian) conodonts in the Canadian Cordillera, northern Yukon Territory. In Orchard, M. J. and McCracken, A. D. (eds.), Ordovician to Triassic Conodont Paleontology of the Canadian Cordillera. Geological Survey of Canada Bulletin, 417:6595.Google Scholar
Mccracken, A. D., and Barnes, C. R. 1981. Conodont biostratigraphy and paleoecology of the Ellis Bay Formation, Anticosti Island, Québec with special reference to late Ordovician-early Silurian chronostratigraphy and the systemic boundary. Geological Survey of Canada Bulletin, 329(part 2):51134.Google Scholar
Miyaoka, R. T. 1990. Fossil locality map and fossil data for the southeastern Charley River quadrangle, east-central Alaska. U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-2007, 1 sheet, scale 1:100,000, 46 p.Google Scholar
Nazarov, B. B. 1975. Radiolaria of the Lower-Middle Paleozoic of Kazakhstan. Trudy akademiia NAUK SSSR, Geologic Institute, 275:203 pp. (In Russian)Google Scholar
Nazarov, B. B. 1988. Radiolarii paleozoa [Paleozoic Radiolaria]. Nedra, 2:1232. (In Russian)Google Scholar
Nazarov, B. B., and Ormiston, A. R. 1984. Tentative system of Paleozoic Radiolaria, p. 6487. In Petrushevskaya, M. G. and Stepanjants, S. D. (eds.), Morphology, Ecology and Evolution of Radiolaria. (Eurorad IV Symposium volume October 1984). Akademiia NAUK SSSR Ecologieskiya Instiytut, Leningrad. (In Russian with English summary)Google Scholar
Nazarov, B. B., and Ormiston, A. R. 1993. New biostratigraphically important Paleozoic Radiolaria of Eurasia and North America, p. 2260. In Blueford, J. R. and Murchey, B. (eds.), Radiolaria of Giant and Subgiant Fields in Asia. Micropaleontology, Special Publication 6.Google Scholar
Nazarov, B. B., and Popov, L. E. 1980. Stratigrafiya i fauna Kremnis-to–Karbonatnykh tolshch ordovika kazakhstana; radiolarii i bezzamkovye brakhiopody [Stratigraphy and fauna of the siliceous-carbonate sequence of the Ordovician of Kazakstan (Radiolarians and inarticulate brachiopods)]. Trudy Geologicheskiy Institut Akademiya Nauk SSR, 331, 190 p. (In Russian)Google Scholar
Nestor, V. 1982. New Wenlockian species of Conochitina from Estonia. Proceedings of the Estonian Academy of Sciences [Eesti Teaduste Akadeemia Toimetised, Geoloogia] 31(3):105110. (In Russian with English summary)Google Scholar
Nestor, V. 1994. Early Silurian chitinozoans of Estonia and North Latvia. Academia, 4:1163.Google Scholar
Noble, P. J. 1994. Silurian radiolarian zonation for the Caballos Novaculite, Marathon Uplift, west Texas. Bulletins of American Paleontology, 106(345):155.Google Scholar
Noble, P. J., Ketner, K. B., and Mcclellan, W. 1997. Early Silurian Radiolaria from northern Nevada, U.S.A. Marine Micropaleontology 30(1–3):15223.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Noble, P. J., Braun, A., and Mcclellan, W. 1998. Haplotaeniatum faunas (Radiolaria) from the Landoverian (Silurian) of Nevada and Germany. Neues Jahrbuch für Geolologie und Palaeontologie, Monatshefte 12:705726.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ormiston, A. R., and Lane, H. R. 1976. A unique radiolarian fauna from the Sycamore Limestone (Mississippian) and its biostratigraphic significance. Palaeontographica, Abteilung A, 154:158180.Google Scholar
Over, D. J., and Chatterton, B. D. E. 1987. Silurian conodonts from the southern Mackenzie Mountains, Northwest Territories, Canada. Geologica et Palaeontologica, 21:149.Google Scholar
Renz, G. W. 1990. Late Ordovician (Caradocian) radiolarians from Nevada. Micropaleontology, 36(4):367377.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rüst, D. 1892. Beiträge zur Kenntnis der fossilen Radiolarien aus Gesteinen der Trias und der Paleozoischen Schichten. Paleontographica, 38:107192.Google Scholar
Sandberg, C. A., and Gutschick, R. C. 1984. Distribution, microfauna and source-rock potentional Mississippian Delle Phosphatic member of Woodman Formation and equivalents, Utah and adjacent states. In Woodward, J., Meissner, F. F., and Clayton, J. L. (eds.), Hydrocarbon Source Rocks of the Greater Rocky Mountain Region, Denver, p. 135178.Google Scholar
Savage, N. M., Blodgett, R. B., and Jaeger, H. 1985. Conodonts and associated graptolites from the late Early Devonian of east-central Alaska and western Yukon Territory. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 22(12):18801883.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schallreuter, R. 1963. Neue Chitinozoen aus ordovizischen Geschieben und Bemerkungen zur Gattung Ill chitina. Paläontologishe Abhandlungen, I:391404.Google Scholar
Strümer, W. 1952. Zur Technik an Graptolithen und radiolarien in Main-Kieselschiefern. Senckenbergiana 2(32):351355.Google Scholar
Strümer, W. 1966. Das Wachstum silurisher Sphaerellarien und ihr spatere chemische umwandlung. Paläontologische Zeitschrift, 40(3/4):257261.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Taugourdeau, P. 1963. étude de quelques espéces critiques de Chitinozoaires de la région d'Edjelé et compléments a la faune locale. Revue de Micropaleontologie, 6(3):130144.Google Scholar
Van Grootel, G. 1990. Litho-en Biostratigrafische studie met Chitinozoa in het westelijk deel van het Massief van Brabant. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, Rijksuniversiteit Gent.Google Scholar
Walliser, O. H. 1964. Conodonten des Silurs. Abhandlungen des Hessischen Landesamtes für Bodenforschung, 41, 106 p.Google Scholar
Webby, B. D., and Blom, W. M. 1986. The first well-preserved radiolarians from the Ordovician of Australia. Journal of Paleontology, 60(1):145157.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Won, M.-Z. 1983. Radiolarien aus dem Unter-Karbon des Rheinischen Schiefergebirges (Deutschland). Palaeontographica, Abteilung A, 182:116175.Google Scholar
Won, M.-Z. 1997. Review of family Entactiniidae (Radiolaria) and taxonomy and morphology of Entactiniidae in the Late Devonian (Frasnian) Gogo Formation, Australia. Micropaleontology, 43(4):333369.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Won, M.-Z., and Below, R. 1999. Cambrian Radiolarian from the Georgina Basin, Queensland, Australia. Micropaleontology, 45(4):325363.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Won, M.-Z., and Iams, W. 2002. Late Cambrian Radiolarian faunas and biostratigraphy of the Cow Head Group, Western Newfoundland. Journal of Paleontology, 76(1):134.2.0.CO;2>CrossRefGoogle Scholar