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12 January 2012 A Revision of the Late Ordovician Marrellomorph Arthropod Furca bohemica from Czech Republic
Štěpán Rak, Javier Ortega-Hernández, David A. Legg
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Abstract

The enigmatic marrellomorph arthropod Furca bohemica from the Upper Ordovician Letná Formation, is redescribed. Based on existing museum specimens and new material collected from the southern slope of Ostrý Hill (Beroun, Czech Republic), the morphology and taphonomy of F. bohemica is reappraised and expanded to produce a new anatomical interpretation. The previously distinct taxa F. pilosa and Furca sp., are synonymised with F. bohemica, the latter being represented by a tapho-series in which decay has obscured some of the diagnostic features. A cladistic analysis indicates close affinities between F. bohemica and the Hunsrück Slate marrellomorph Mimetaster hexagonalis, together forming the Family Mimetasteridae, contrary to previous models for marrellomorph internal relationships. As with other representatives of the group, the overall anatomy of F. bohemica is consistent with a benthic, or possibly nektobenthic, mode of life. The depositional setting of the Letná Formation indicates that F. bohemica inhabited a shallow marine environment, distinguishing it palaeoecologically from all other known marrellomorphs, which have been reported from the continental shelf.

© 2013 Š. Rak et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Štěpán Rak, Javier Ortega-Hernández, and David A. Legg "A Revision of the Late Ordovician Marrellomorph Arthropod Furca bohemica from Czech Republic," Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 58(3), 615-628, (12 January 2012). https://doi.org/10.4202/app.2011.0038
Received: 28 March 2011; Accepted: 1 January 2012; Published: 12 January 2012
KEYWORDS
Arthropoda
Barrandian
Czech Republic
Letná Formation
Marrella
Mimetaster
Ordovician
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