Mentors : the generation 1935-1985

The lives and scientific contributions of five eminent academic geologists and paleontologists; James Alloiteau (Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France), Dorothy Hill (University of Queensland, Australia), Marius Lecompte (University of Louvain, Belgium), Masao Minato (Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan), and Maria Różkowska (Adam Mickiewicz University, Poland) are briefly summarized here. Each of these paleontologists made major contributions to the study of fossil corals and/or sponges, and each overcame considerable difficulties and disruptions in their lives to excel as mentors to us. All showed remarkable determination and love for paleontological research, and inspired their students and colleagues to understand details of structure and systematic positions of fossil corals and sponges. Each of these individual mentors was the subject of a presentation by a former student at the 11th International Symposium on Fossil Corals and Sponges in Liege, Belgium; thus, somewhat broader coverage of each is provided in the abstracts volume of the meeting

Australian Cretaceous cnidaria and porifera

Australian Cretaceous sponge and coral faunas are reviewed and increased with new discoveries. The largest new fauna described, from the very thin Maastrichtian Miria Formation, an uncemented chalky marl, in the Carnarvon Basin, Western Australia, includes a poriferan, Ventriculites sp., the hydrozoans, Stylaster cretaceous sp. nov. and Astya nielseni Wells, 1977 originally described from the Eocene of Tonga and the scleractinian corals Smilotrochus carnarvonensis sp. nov., Conotrochus giraliensis sp. nov., Parasmilia cyensis sp. nov., Palaeopsammia cardabiaensis sp. nov., Flabellum miriaensis sp. nov., Ballanophyllia acostae sp. nov., representatives of five genera left in open nomenclature and Caryophyllia arcotensis (Forbes, 1846), originally described from south India. The Santonian Gingin Chalk, in the northern Perth Basin, Western Australia has yielded the scleractinian corals Ceratotrochus ginginensis (Etheridge 1913), originally assigned to Coelosmilia and Caryophyllia arcotensis (Forbes, 1846), holdfast structures that probably supported octocorals and the poriferans, Peronidella(?) globosa (Etheridge 1913) and Pachyteichisma corrugatus sp. nov. Mckenziephyllia accordensis gen. et sp. nov. is described as the first scleractinian coral (Faviidae) from the Eromanga Basin. It comes from the Albian Allaru Formation in the Barcaldine district of central Queensland. Purisiphonia clarkei Bowerbank, 1869 is noted from the Aptian Wallumbilla Formation as the only known poriferan in the Surat and Eromanga basins

Quaternary

Despite their limited economic utility, Queensland\u27s Quaternary deposits have attracted considerable attention. This is because studies of these deposits could shed light on processes and mechanisms of past periods of climate change, and therefore are particularly pertinent in contemporary debates on human impacts, future climate change and environmental fluctuation

Heliolitine tabulate corals from Late Ordovician and possibly early Silurian allochthonous limestones in the Broken River Province, Queensland, Australia

Coral faunas of Late Ordovician (Ashgill) and possibly early Silurian age are present in allochthonous limestone blocks incorporated in debris flow deposits in the Broken River Province of north Queensland. The limestones occur in the Carriers Well Formation and Crooked Creek Conglomerate, which now lie within structurally deformed fault slices, and are evidence of the existence of a former carbonate platform of this age situated to the west. The fauna from the Carriers Well Formation includes 15 taxa belonging to the heliolitine coral families Heliolitidae, Pseudoplasmoporidae, Plasmoporidae, Plasmoporellidae and Sibiriolitidae. New taxa present are Wairunalites greeni gen. et sp. nov. and Plasmoporella marginata sp. nov. The fauna includes other species belonging to Heliolites, Plasmoporella and Sibiriolites in common with Late Ordovician faunas of New South Wales, central Asia and northern China. A limestone block in the Crooked Creek Conglomerate contains a few non-diagnostic heliolitine corals, together with rugosan, favositine and halysitine corals similar to those in the blocks of the Carriers Well Formation, but it also contains several alveolitine tabulates suggesting a possible early Silurian age

Middle devonian rugose corals from the fanning river group, north Queensland, Australia

Rich coral faunas occur within a major transgressional-regressional cycle of latest Eifelian to Givetian age at the base of the Burdekin Basin, north Queensland. This sequence is represented by the tripartite Fanning River Group, with the initial Big Bend Arkose comprising non-marine to near-shore siliciclastic deposits, followed by the predominantly carbonate Burdekin Formation developed in shallow shelf environments, and at the top, the Cultivation Gully Formation of sandstones and shales representing the concluding regressive phase. Thirty-three species and subspecies of rugose corals are described from the Fanning River Group including the following 11 new taxa: Lekanophyllum fultum zonophylloides subsp. nov., L. hillae sp. nov., Centristela speciosa sp. nov., Endophyllum columna giganteum subsp. nov., Grypophyllum crassum sp. nov., Sunophyllum simplex sp. nov., S. proteum sp. nov., Charactophyllum (Charactophyllum) burdekinense sp. nov., Temnophyllum (Temnophyllum) etheridgei sp. nov., Chostophyllum minus sp. nov., and Planetophyllum succinctum sp. nov. Three coral faunas are recognized and form the biostratigraphic framework for regional correlation of the Group. The lower coral fauna, Charactophyllum-Sunophyllum fauna, is of latest Eifelian to early Givetian age. This is succeeded by the Aphyllum salmoni fauna of early to middle Givetian age. The upper is the Endophyllum columna of middle to late Givetian age. Occurrences of Sunophyllum, Stringophyllum, Temnophyllum, Chostopbyllum, Charactophyllum, Ch. (Spinophyllum) and Centristela in the Fanning River Group suggest correlation with coral faunas of similar age from south China, central Asia, Europe and northwestern Canada

Recent developments on a nearshore, terrigenous-influenced reef: Low Isles Reef, Australia

Low Isles Reef is the most southerly located of 46 coral reef platforms unique to the inner shelf of the northern Great Barrier Reef Province, Australia, which support both sea grass and mangrove growth. Such reefs develop in areas that are influenced by river flood plumes and where interreef sediments are dominated by terrigenous mud. Low Isles Reef has long been a popular tourist destination. Informal reports of decreasing visibility, a decline in scleractinian corals, and increases in soft coral and macroalgae have sparked speculation that agricultural activities in coastal catchments are affecting the reef. Comparison of the modern surface of Low Isles Reef with historical surveys and photographs dating back to 1928 allows quantification of modern sedimentary processes, rates of change, and factors influencing reef development. Results indicate that changes on Low Isles Reef are related to remobilization of coarse sediment during storm events and gradual shoreline retreat associated with rising sea level. Retreat of shingle ramparts and elongate ridges of coral debris toward the reef interior has led to the infilling of subtidal ponds on the reef top, which supported hard coral colonies in 1928. The gradual development of a composite shingle rampart along the windward margin has promoted an increase (;150%) in the area of the reef top covered by mangroves. On the leeward margin, a decrease in hard corals since 1950 may reflect a rising contribution of organic debris from the expanding mangrove swamp. Results suggest that recent changes on Low Isles Reef can be explained in the context of natural processes. Further study is needed before the effects of agricultural activities in coastal catchments on reef health can be confirmed

The Silurian rugose coral genus Entelophyllum and related genera in northern Europe

Volume: 33Start Page: 769End Page: 82

Structure and incremental growth in the ahermatypic coral Desmophyllum cristagalli from the North Atlantic

Volume: 20Start Page: 1End Page: 1