Quasillites
Extinct genus of seed shrimps
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Quasillites is a fossil genus of ostracod from the Devonian and Carboniferous Periods.[1][2]
| Quasillites Temporal range: Middle Devonian to Lower Carboniferous | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Ostracoda |
| Order: | Platycopida |
| Family: | †Quasillitidae |
| Genus: | †Quasillites Coryell & Malkin, 1936 |
| Species | |
| |
Description
Quasillites is distinguished from other ostracodes by the presence of a "medial spot" on each valve.[2] The surface of each valve is covered in longitudinal, bifurcating ridges, which curve and resemble a finger print.[2][3] The ribs and spines on the carapace are in front of the posterior margin, and are similar to those of other ostracods such as Bufina, Parabufina, and Healdia.[4] In fact, this comparison can also be drawn for all Quasillitids to other Healdiids.[4] The muscle scars on each valve is circular in shape, and some specimens have smaller secondary scars.[4]
Distribution
Devonian examples of Quasillites, such as Q. lobatus, Q. obliquus, Q. subobliquus, and Q. angulatus, are known from shales and claystones in northern New York, Eastern Ohio, central Pennsylvania.[2][3][5][6] Other species such as Q. fromelennensis and a second informal species can also be found in Limestones of northern France, near the city of Calais.[7] This genus has also been found in the Lower Carboniferous edge of the Illinois Basin; in central Indiana.[1]