Reply To: A little help with this brachipod, please…

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#36372
Charlie Smith
Participant

Hello Nathan,

First of all, nice Brachiopod; I like how its perched on the matrix.  After searching on fossilworks.org for Rhynchonellata (Brachiopods) in the Tonoloway Limestone from West Virginia, it revealed 4 species: H. congregata, C. litchfieldensis, S. zanuxemi, and S. keyserensis. The last two species, both belonging to the genus Spirifer, seem to be the most likely candidates. Spirifer often shows a broad sulcus in the middle of the brachiopod, which is also shown in your fossil.  Out of these two species, I believe its Spirifer keyserensis, as Spirifer zanuxemi has been compared to a slightly more common Brachiopod, Spirifer cyclopterous, in this paper. However, the same paper contrasts the 2 by stating S. zanuxemi has less plications than S. cyclopterous.  Judging from this Yale specimen, S. Cyclopterous has much fewer plications than your fossil, so I doubt it is S. zanuxemi.