Fifteen species of Late Permian bryozoans occur in a biohermal bank in the Mission Argillite of northeastern Washington. These include two species conspecific with species described from Japan and 13 new species, one of which is the type species of a new genus. The presence of two species, Dyscritella iwaizakiensis Sakagami, 1961, and Hayasakapora cf. erectoradiata Sakagami, 1960, previously reported from Japan, and the similarity of new species with those previously described from Japan, China and Russia supports the idea that these rocks were originally deposited in the southeastern or central western Pacific Ocean and subsequently accreted to the North American Plate.

Bryozoans and previously reported fusulinids indicate that the biohermal bank is latest Wordian (Kazanian).

Newly described bryozoans include the new genus and type species Sakagamiina easternensis belonging to the Timanodictyidae. Other new species are Fistuliramus pacificus, Meekoporella inflecta, Neoeridotrypella missionensis, Coeloclemis urhausenii, Tabulipora colvillensis, Rhombotrypella kettlensis, Pamirella oculus, Pinegopora petita, Wjatkella nanea, Alternifenestella vagrantia, Polypora arbusca, and Mackinneyella stylettia.

Extraordinarily large, thick shelled polyplacophorans occur in the Permian limestone in the province of Perak, Malaysia. Three new genera and species are proposed: Hadrochiton pileus, Pyknochiton lunatus, and Kraterochiton magnificus. The occurrence of K. magnificus extends the range of the family Acutichitonidae into the Middle Permian.

The Subulitoidea have long been an enigmatic group of Paleozoic gastropods and share many characters of post-Paleozoic clades. Newly described protoconchs from several late Paleozoic subulitoid species have been employed in a phylogenetic analysis of the group. Late Paleozoic representatives, the Soleniscidae, are caenogastropods with an unornamented orthostrophic larval shell. The Meekospiridae have a smooth blunt protoconch of about two whorls. In contrast to previous interpretations, this protoconch is not heterostrophic or heterostrophy is not obvious. Therefore, a placement of the Meekospiridae with the genus Girtyspira in the Opisthobranchia is to be treated with caution. The new lanthinopsis-like genus Imogloba has a gobular subulitid-like teleoconch but its protoconch consists of a smooth first whorl which is loosely coiled and a larval shell with a characteristic non collabral ornament. Therefore, a close relationship between Soleniscidae and Imogloba is unlikely and the new family Imoglobidae is proposed. We found no clearly heterostrophic groups within the late Paleozoic subulitoid gastropods. The phylogenetic analysis of all subulitoid genera with known protoconchs provides little support for the monophyly of the Subulitoidea, particularly for a close relation between the Meekospiridae and the Soleniscidae. However, the Soleniscidae and Meekospiridae are probably monophyletic groups. Most genera are restricted to the Paleozoic, although several Mesozoic genera may hold descendants of Paleozoic Subulitoidea. Finally, a hypothesized link between Subulitoidea and Neogastropoda based on the presence of an anterior notch in both groups is unlikely.

Halobia daonellaformis new species is described from the lowermost Carnian of northeast British Columbia. Halobia daonellaformis n. sp. is regarded as a primitive Halobia characterized by external ornamentation similar to Daonella lommeli, but with a poorly developed anterior auricle. Morphologic characters of H. daonellaformis n. sp. suggest that Halobia may be not a natural taxon but a polyphyletic group with one or more ancestors from Daonella and Aparimella and/or other posidoniid(s). The sudden appearance of Halobia throughout the marine Triassic suggests a rapid dispersal mechanism following a Ladinian origin. Larval shell morphology indicates a planktotrophic developmental strategy for H. daonellaformis n. sp., and by extension to other halobiids, which may explain the widespread distribution of many halobiid species.

Twelve ptychopariid species assigned to five genera occur in the Lower-Middle Cambrian boundary interval, Pioche Shale, eastern Nevada. New taxa include one genus, Eokochaspis, and seven species, Eokochaspis nodosa, E. delamarensis, E. metalaspis, E. longspina, Kochina? walcotti, Mexicella antelopea, and M. robusta. Two new biozones, the Eokochaspis nodosa and overlying Amecephalus arrojosensis Biozones, are proposed between the Lower Cambrian Olenellus Biozone and the Middle Cambrian Plagiura-Poliella Biozone. In addition, the three remaining informal shale members of the Pioche Shale are formally named.

Newly discovered fossils from Eocene rocks of the Quimper Sandstone, Washington, USA, constitute the first reported occurrence of the albuneid genus Lophomastix Benedict, 1904, in the fossil record. Lophomastix and the closely related genus Blepharipoda Randall, 1839, are thought to be basal taxa within the decapod family Albuneidae Stimpson, 1858, based upon possession of primitive trichobranch gill structures. The occurrence of Lophomastix antiqua new species in Eocene deposits indicates that the genus is at least as old as the more derived genus, Albunea Weber, 1795, as would be expected for the basal taxon within the family. Based upon examination of type material, Blepharipoda brucei Rathbun, 1926, is herein removed from that genus and placed within the Paguroidea as Pagurus brucei (Rathbun, 1926) new combination.

New portunoid fossils from southern Argentina and from the west coast of North America permit the reevaluation of the generic and family relationships within the Portunoidea Rafinesque, 1815. It has previously been suggested that the Portunidae and the Geryonidae Colosi, 1923, are closely related families (Manning and Holthuis, 1989). The new fossils suggest that the Geryonidae may in fact be derived from a portunid progenitor, Proterocarcinus Feldmann, Casadío, Chirino-Gálvez, and Aguirre Urreta, 1995, through a process of peramorphosis in which juveniles of the geryonid species Chaceon peruvianus (d'Orbigny, 1842) resemble adults of Proterocarcinus latus (Glaessner, 1933). Examination of several genera within the portunid subfamily Polybiinae Ortmann, 1893, including Imaizumila Karasawa, 1993; Megokkos new genus; Minohellenus Karasawa, 1990; Pororaria Glaessner, 1980; Portunites Bell, 1858; and Proterocarcinus, suggests that the subfamily had an amphitropical distribution early in its history. New taxa reported here include Megokkos new genus and Portunites nodosus new species. New combinations include Chaceon peruvianus (d'Orbigny, 1842), Imaizumila araucana (Philippi, 1887), Megokkos alaskensis (Rathbun, 1926), Megokkos hexagonalis (Nagao, 1932), Megokkos macrospinus (Schweitzer, Feldmann, Tucker, and Berglund, 2000), Minohellenus triangulum (Rathbun, 1926), and Proterocarcinus latus (Glaessner, 1933).

Paleocene spatangoids are unknown from the Antilles, apart from evidence from trace fossils. The peak of spatangoid diversity was the Eocene. Jamaican Oligo-Miocene spatangoids have a relatively low diversity compared with that of the Antillean region. Plio-Pleistocene spatangoids are poorly known from the Antilles (four genera), in contrast to the Oligo-Miocene (16 genera) and Holocene (17 genera). The depauperate Paleocene and Plio-Pleistocene spatangoid faunas are probably in part artifacts of incomplete sampling, facies-related absences, outcrop area effects and the relative brevity of these stratigraphic intervals.

To the large echinoid fauna of the Swanswick Formation (Middle-Upper Eocene) of Jamaica is added the schizasterid Aguayoaster schickleri new species. This is the first record of this genus outside Cuba; it is distinctly more elongate than all other known specimens of this genus. The schizasterid Caribbaster loveni (Cotteau, 1875) is recorded from the Swanswick Formation for the first time, the youngest occurrence of this genus in Jamaica. The coeval Claremont Formation has not previously yielded spatangoid echinoids; the brissid Eupatagus cf. antillarum (Cotteau) from a new locality is the first spatangoid known from a lagoonal unit of the White Limestone Group.

The multielement conodont genus, Anticostiodus new genus, is described based on discrete elements from the Lower Silurian (early Aeronian) Gun River Formation of Anticosti Island, Quebec. The apparatus includes pectiniform Pa, Pb, Pc and Pd elements and ramiform M, Sa, Sb and Sc elements. Two new species are included under the new genus, Anticostiodus fahraeusi (type species) and Anticostiodus boltoni. Both species occur near the base of Distomodus staurognathoides Zone and in an open subtidal environment.

A skull representing a new genus and species of Late Triassic temnospondyl, Rileymillerus cosgriffi, is described from the Cooper Canyon Formation, upper Dockum Group of Garza County, Texas. Rileymillerus resembles Latiscopus disjunctus in size and proportions, but the very poorly preserved unique type specimen of L. disjunctus indicates that the taxon should be considered a nomen dubium. Characters of R. cosgriffi include its small size combined with relatively small laterally-facing orbits, relatively high skull, lack of lateral line canals, lateral exposure of the palatine on the skull surface, and lack of otic notch/quadrate angle. No postcranial material can be definitely associated, although we describe a partial vertebral column that might pertain to R. cosgriffi. Relationships of R. cosgriffi are uncertain. The possibilities of a close relationship to Almsauridae, Tupilakosauridae or (especially) Brachyopoidea are explicitly examined, but for the present we consider R. cosgriffi as Temnospondyl incertae sedis. Characters described in the text have been converted to the tripartite (part, feature, state) standardized format developed for the PRESERVE web site, and are presented as a 125-character data matrix in the Appendix.

A complete skeleton of Solnhofia parsonsi (Cryptodira, Eurysternidae) from the Kimmeridgian/Tithonian boundary of Schamhaupten, Germany provides the first complete understanding of the postcranial morphology of this genus. The here newly described postcranial characters are important in distinguishing Solnhofia from shell-based genera and thus help in resolving part of the parataxonomic conflict between shell-based and cranium-based turtle genera. This disparity originated during the last 150 years due to the history of fossil finds, preparation, and changing interests of researchers. Synonymies of Solnhofia with such turtle genera as Eurysternum, Idiochelys, Plesiochelys, Thalassemys, and Euryaspis can now be refuted. Similarities with Hydropelta are apparent, but not considered sufficient to support a synonymy. Newly observed or confirmed characters include the relatively large head (40 percent of the carapace length), the pentagonal carapace, the unique arrangement of bones and fontanelles in the pygal region, and the absence of mesoplastra, epiplastra, and an entoplastron.

The carcass of the new specimen was embedded in finely laminated limestones and shows little sign of disintegration or scavenging, suggesting hostile bottom conditions with very low water energy during deposition. This taphonomy agrees with recent published models for the origin of the lithographic limestones of southern Germany. Tooth marks along the posterior margin of the carapace are evidence of predation by a broad-nosed crocodilian. This is the first clear example for this type of predatorial interaction from the Upper Jurassic of Germany.

A new species of multituberculate mammal, Hainina pyrenaica n. sp. is described from Fontllonga-3 (Tremp Basin, Southern Pyrenees, Spain), correlated to the later part of chron C29r just above the K/T boundary. This taxon represents the earliest European Tertiary mammal recovered so far, and is related to other Hainina species from the European Paleocene. A revision of the species of Hainina allows recognition of a new species, H. vianeyae n. sp. from the Late Paleocene of Cernay (France). The genus is included in the family Kogaionidae Rãdulescu and Samson, 1996 from the Late Cretaceous of Romania on the basis of unique dental characters. The Kogaionidae had a peculiar masticatory system with a large, blade-like lower p4, similar to that of advanced Ptilodontoidea, but occluding against two small upper premolars, interpreted as P4 and P5, instead of a large upper P4. The endemic European Kogaionidae derive from an Early Cretaceous group with five premolars, and evolved during the Late Cretaceous and Paleocene. The genus Hainina represents a European multituberculate family that survived the K/T boundary mass extinction event.

A detailed investigation of the morphological evolution of the coccolithophorids Calcidiscus leptoporus and C. macintyrei from the Early Miocene to the Quaternary shows that microevolutionary patterns were very complex. Speciation patterns such as cladogenesis and phyletic divergence were observed, but stasis also existed over prolonged time-intervals. Similar coccoliths developed repeatedly at stratigraphically distant intervals, leading to taxonomic uncertainies. On the basis of bivariate frequency diagrams of coccolith diameters and number of elements in the distal shields nine morphotypes S, I, L, F, A, B, C, D and E are distinguished. A tentative phylogeny was constructed for these morphotypes suggesting, that they belong to one extant species and several extinct species. The extant species is Calcidiscus leptoporus, which comprises the living morphotypes S, I, L, and F and one extinct morphotype E. Morphotype S is the most conservative one, which originated from an unknown ancestor during the Early Miocene or earlier, while morphotype I originated from S during the Early Miocene. Morphotypes L and E separated from I during the Late Miocene. An extinct lineage is proposed, including morphotypes C, D, A, and B, which all produced large coccoliths except morphotype B, which is small. Morphotypes C, D, and A are very similar to a coccolith that specialists call Calcidiscus macintyrei, but in the present phylogenetic model they may belong to separate species with similar morphology. Morphotype C developed from morphotype I during the Early Miocene and is the precursor of an extra large morphotype D, and two other morphotypes, A and B. All three forms separated from morphotype C by pronounced cladogenetic events during the Late Miocene and Pliocene, and hence may represent separate species. Morphotypes A and B are supposed to belong to an extinct morphocline and may thus be ecophenotypes of one species. Alternatively, due to the lack of paleoenvironmental and biogeographic observations in the past, it cannot be discounted that all morphotypes found in this investigation simply represent ecovariants of one species. With the present status of knowledge, it is not possible to propose a sound differential diagnosis in the plexus C. leptoporus-C. macintyrei, which would allow differentiation among species at each point in space and time. It is hoped that this study stimulates further morphometric and phylogenetical studies that will generate a more profound understanding of species in paleontology and biology in general.

Ediacara-type fossils are rare in the southwestern United States, and Cambrian occurrences of soft-bodied Ediacaran-type fossils are extremely rare. We report both discoidal and frondlike fossils comparable to Ediacaran taxa from the western edge of the Great Basin. We describe one specimen of a discoidal fossil, referred to the form species ?Tirasiana disciformis, from the upper member of the Lower Cambrian Wood Canyon Formation from the Salt Spring Hills, California. Two fragmentary specimens of frond-like soft-bodied fossils are described from the middle member of the Lower Cambrian Poleta Formation in the White Mountains, California, and the upper member of the Wood Canyon Formation in the southern Kelso Mountains, California. On the basis of similarities with fossils from the lower member of the Wood Canyon Formation and from the Spitzkopf Member of the Urusis Formation of Namibia, these specimens are interpreted as cf. Swartpuntia. All fossils were collected from strata containing diagnostic Early Cambrian body and trace fossils, and thus add to previous reports of complex Ediacaran forms in Cambrian marine environments. In this region, Swartpuntia persists through several hundred meters of section, spanning at least two trilobite zones.

Early permian strata in two displaced terranes of the McCloud belt contain a small biconic gastropod of distinctive appearance, Vesperispira humboldtiana new genus and species. This trochiform gastropod has a strongly oblique aperture with interrupted peristome, a small sinus on the peripheral margin of the shell, and lamellose shell. This gastropod is an easily recognized biogeographic indicator of the McCloud province biota, because of its lamellose ornamentation. Occurrence of this gastropod in strata of the Pine Forest Range of northwestern Nevada provides additional evidence for including rock units of the Black Rock terrane within the McCloud Belt, a grouping of several displaced terranes along the western margin of North America (Stevens et al., 1990) that contain fossil biotas rich in endemic species.