50 Fossils in the Northeastern U.S.: Recent Discoveries and Reinterpretations

Tuesday, 24 March 2015
3:30 PM - 5:30 PM
Dartmouth Room

A PRIDOLIAN (OR EARLIER) SILURIAN TERRESTRIAL PLANT COMMUNITY IN THE BERTIE GROUP LAGERSTATTE OF EASTERN NEW YORK

Paper number: 50-3
Program: Theme Sessions
Time: 4:10 PM – 4:30 PM

Authors

Abstract

Examination of plant fossils collected in the Bertie Group at the Lang quarry in Herkimer County, New York is revealing a low frequency but diverse assemblage of terrestrial plants. The specimens found so far include liverworts, lycopod- like specimens, fertile cooksonias, zosterophyllum grades and a putative “protoligniphyte”. Specimens are well preserved morphologically but structural details are scarce. Other terrestrial fossils recovered include two types of Prototaxites-like taxa and one species of scorpion that may have lived sub-aerially and a scorpion relative that may be land adaptated.

The quarry has produced many eurypterids including giants over seven feet long, algae, gastropods and cephalopods as well as rare barnacles, a synxiphosurine, one phyllocarid, a hydrozoan, a hydra like fossil, a brachiopod, a single tabulate coral, several primitive fish and other material. Most of these are undescribed.

The plant fossils indicate a thriving and diverse terrestrial ecosystem at a very early time that may require a reappraisal of the environment(s) represented in the Bertie Group.