Cretaceous Invertebrate New Jersey

[squali]

I am pretty sure I have seen this fossil Genus posted before but can't remember where. I think it is either a 'lid to' an invert

home, or a coral with attachment base. I could be wrong about that as well.

Found in the Woodbury formation ( Campanian). Any help is greatly appreciated.

Hopefully the penny is sufficient for scale as a profile view.

Added post to fit other view

Thanks

Jeff

[squali]

This is the other view.

Thanks again for your responses.

[tmaier]

I'm going to go with solitary coral. Never seen one like that before.

[tmaier]

After looking around, I think it is a solitary "cup" coral in the family of Caryophylliidae. Here is something close called "Species A (undertermied)"

http://www.nature.com/srep/2013/131003/srep02802/fig_tab/srep02802_F4.html

[BelemnBlues]

Hi Jeff,

It is a coral with the base attached to a shell fragment. I think tmaier is correct on the family Caryophylliidae. I believe the genus is Trochocyathus. The species that is typically reported from the Woodbury is woolmani but the base of your example is wider than I have seen before.

Nice find.

Luke

[tmaier]

but the base of your example is wider than I have seen before.

Might be a juvenile?

[squali]

Thanks for the responses. I'll label it as Trochocyathus woolmani tentatively. They are listed in the Woodbury formation .

[tmaier]

Thanks for the responses. I'll label it as Trochocyathus woolmani tentatively. They are listed in the Woodbury formation .

Ouch. That is what I hate to see. Let the specimen speak for itself and don't allow the list to force you into classifying it according to what it says. The specimen should determine the classification, not the formation.

Definitely put a question mark on it.

[squali]

Thanks tmaier, that's why I used the word tentatively...

[squali]

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B4uUD1fHm8_PNzczMGQ3ZmUtNjRmOS00M2Y3LWI1MmQtOTQ0NGY4YjZjY2M0/edit?hl=en&pli=1

I am having a problem completely matching the specimen I posted with Trochocyathus woolmani.

In the description of the type specimen- Vaughn-1900

in an article from The Proceedings Of The Academy Of Natural Sciences Of Philadelphia 1900

titled: Trochoctathus Woolmani, A New Coral From The Cretaceous Of New Jersey

by T. Wayland Vaughan . see attached link.

The costae and septa number and features match.

However, as Luke pointed out, there seems to be a problem with the fact that it is not inversely conical

The type specimen has a base attachment of 1mm and a calice diameter of 3.5mm.

this is more like a 5mm base with the rest of the dimensions matching the type specimen.

So, still contemplating this ID. I wonder if the object the coral attaches to has an influence on the base diameter and if this can be a variation.

By the way, I don't think paleo infighting was just for Cope and Marsh.

read what Vaughan has to say about Gabb at the end of his paper.

Edit; added screen grab

The attached screen grab is from www.newjerseypaleo.com

Edited December 2, 2014 by squali

[Al Dente]

I think it is possible that this isn't a solitary coral. I could be the first polyp of a colonial coral that died and was buried before it was able to divide and form a colony.

[squali]

Thanks Al Dente for that lead. That may make things much more difficult to ID to even a Family though.

I'll keep looking

[Plax]

I agree with Al that it looks like an encruster. Have seen something like this in the Woodbury (in the Gervilliopsis bed) and in the NC Cretaceous where there's aragonitic preservation, Richards in his "Cretaceous of New Jersey" has a pic of this or something similar.

[squali]

Thank you Plax!! I know the Woodbury has been correlated with a formation in North Carolina

But I was unaware of the Gervillopsis beds. I'm working my up to Richards. Cretaceous. Of New Jersey on this one.

I appreciate all input thanks

Jeff

[Plax]

Some sections of Woodbury occasionally have a concentrated layer of Gervilliopsis shells. The little Exogyrid, Amphidonte, described by Bernstein is fairly abundant in that bed.

[squali]

Richards only lists 3 corals from The Cretaceous of New Jersey Volume 1

Mirabacia cribaria Stephenson.

Astrangia cretacea

and Trochocyathus woolmani Vaughan.

It is definitely not the first 2.

I have doubts about T. woolmani mainly because the base dimension and it is not inversely conical.

I think I will have to look into North Carolina Cretaceous references next

[Dryptosaur]

I would agree with Trochocyathus woolmani. Probably the top of the calice is broken. Solitary corals are often variable in shape.

[squali]

Thank you Dryptosaur for your comments. I have been mulling this over for some time wondering about the possibility of a variation on the attachment point of some solitary corals. The specimen has too many other characteristics of T. woolmani

to disregard it as the most probable ID. The bonus is, I have a better understanding of the original paleoecology of my favorite formation. I'm attaching my Woodbury formation coral collection for added fun.

Edit: The top left, white fossil, may be paleozoic float but I think it is Astrangia cretacea ? from the Cretaceous

I have to give thanks to the extensive Jerseycentric Bibliography compiled by newjerseypaleo.com The classics are linked, even some obscure ones like Vaughan's. I am enjoying my winter reading so far.

Edited December 8, 2014 by squali