Publication details
The first record of osteolepiform sarcopterygian from the Moravian Karst (Famennian, Czech Republic)
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| Year of publication | 2014 |
| Type | Conference abstract |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | Devonian and Carboniferous sequences of the Moravian Karst were deposited in the Rheno-Hercynian basin at the southern margin of Laurussia. All the previously known sarcopterygian remains from these deposits belong to onychodontiform fishes (eg. Ginter in Hladil et al. 1991). Recently, a cosmine-covered dermal bone was found in a small abandoned pit-quarry near the road leading from Brno Líšeň to Ochoz u Brna, where the two meters thick section of the Famennian Křtiny Limestones (Líšeň Formation) is exposed. This specimen was obtained from darker grey biodetrital limestones close to the boundary of the Upper Palmatolepis rugosa trachytera and the Lower Palmatolepis perlobata postera conodont zones (the bed “B” sensu Weiner & Kalvoda 2013). The dermal bone is subtriangular in outline and bears characters of the lateral extrascapular. The absence of overlapped area at the median margin suggests that the lateral extrascapulars overlapped the median extrascapular. This condition is usual in osteolepiforms (Jarvik, 1980). The openings of tubules leading to the main sensory and supratemporal commisural canals are numerous and evenly distributed at the upper surface of the bone. In contrast to many other known cosmine-bearing osteolepiforms the course of sensory canals cannot be distinguished by tracing these openings. The pit line is developed. The absence of Westoll lines and buried odontodes, enamel/enameloid not dipping into the flask shaped pore-canals, relatively small size of the pore-canals surface openings together with the shape of the pore-canals and interconnecting mesh canals also resemble conditions common in osteolepiforms. Osteolepiform fishes were previously reported from freshwater, brackish and marine sediments. The new specimen was obtained from clearly marine deposits. This is the first record of osteolepiform sarcopterygian from the Moravian Karst. The contribution was supported by the grant project GACR 205/14-18183S. |
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