Swatara Gap PS Starfish

[crabfossilsteve]

I've been collecting at the actual Swatara Gap site since I was a kid and over the years collected most of the trilobites and starfish that were found there.  However, there are some starfish that I would like to verify.  I've tried literature searches and know there is a 1989 paper on them , but I cannot find it on-line.  Hopefully, one of you guys can help with identifying these specimens.  Any help would be appreciated/

 

 

 

 

[crabfossilsteve]

Here are a couple more Swatara Gap starfish for possible identification

 

[crabfossilsteve]

Here are two more for potential ID.  Thanks

 

[piranha]

Swatara Asteroidea: Lehman & Pope 1989

Mesopaleaster cf. lanceolatus
Promopaleaster bellulus
Promopaleaster pricei
Schuchertia laxata
Urasterella pulchella

 

Swatara Ophiuroidea: Lehman & Pope 1989
Phragmactis sp.
Protasterina maximus
Taeniaster sp.

 

Lehman, D., Pope, J.K. 1989

Upper Ordovician tempestites from Swatara Gap, Pennsylvania: depositional processes affecting the sediments and paleoecology of the fossil faunas.

Palaios, 4(6):553-564

 

Schuchert, C. 1915
Revision of Paleozoic Stelleroidea with special reference to North American Asteroidea.
Smithsonian Institution, United States National Museum, 88:1-312   PDF LINK

[Peat Burns]

[crabfossilsteve]

Hey Piranha, thanks for quick reply, but that is the 1989 paper I was referring to above.  What I'm looking for are identifications of the specimens pictured above.  I have that list of species also, but have not been able to get that publication.  Names without the pictures of the associated species are not what I need.

 

Thanks

 

Steve

[piranha]

Lehman & Pope 1989 only has the list of fauna and does not have any figured specimens. The link posted above has 38 pages of figured specimens for comparison.

[crabfossilsteve]

Thanks Piranha.  Yeah, I did look at that paper and the figures.  Too bad the 1989 paper does not have figures since I was hoping to verify what was what.  Not sure I trust my judgments based on the figures in that 1915 paper.  Thanks anyways.  

[Dean Ruocco]

On 4/26/2020 at 1:21 PM, crabfossilsteve said:

I've been collecting at the actual Swatara Gap site since I was a kid and over the years collected most of the trilobites and starfish that were found there.  However, there are some starfish that I would like to verify.  I've tried literature searches and know there is a 1989 paper on them , but I cannot find it on-line.  Hopefully, one of you guys can help with identifying these specimens.  Any help would be appreciated/

 

 

 

 

 

On 4/26/2020 at 1:38 PM, crabfossilsteve said:

Here are a couple more Swatara Gap starfish for possible identification

 

 

On 4/26/2020 at 1:47 PM, crabfossilsteve said:

Here are two more for potential ID.  Thanks

 

Hello, I am going to identify the Starfish above top to bottom. I have seen a lot of private collections from Swatara Gap and know the fauna well. 

 

1. This one has been the most difficult to identify, my guess is its a Phragmactis. 

2. Phragmactis. 

3. Taeniaster. 

4. Phragmactis.

5. Petraster prici. 

 

This collection of starfish is amazing! Starfish were pretty rare at Swatara Gap, most of them are locked down in old collections now.  I would Love to see your trilobite collection from Swatara!!

[hemipristis]

Amazing, isn’t it, that these critters go back that far almost unchanged?