Ospreyella

Simon, Eric & Hoffmann, Jana, 2013, Discovery of Recent thecideide brachiopods (Order: Thecideida, Family: Thecideidae) in Sulawesi, Indonesian Archipelago, with implications for reproduction and shell size in the genus Ospreyella, Zootaxa 3694 (5), pp. 401-433 : 425

Ospreyella sp. (Europa Island)

Plate 8, Figs 1a–b, 2–3, 4a–c, 5–7.

Lacazella mauritiana Dall, 1920 ; Zezina, 1987, p. 561.

Material investigated. The specimens illustrated in this paper (Pl. 8, Figs 1–7), deposited in the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle in Paris, were obtained from off Europa Island in the Mozambique Channel during the BENTHEDI – Cruise (March/ April 1977) under the leadership of B. A. Thomassin (Station Marine d’Endoume, Marseille).

Description. The shell is transversely ovate, much wider than long and the interarea is rather short (Pl. 8, Fig. 1a–b). The dorsal valve is evenly convex (Pl. 8, Fig. 1b) and exhibits a relatively wide but short median ramus, which is deeply incised and produces small interdigitations allowing the development of the minor interbrachial lobes (Pl. 8; Figs 4a, 5, 6). Two very large ramuli, much wider than the median ramus and very concave ventrally are developed. The minor interbrachial lobes are without furcations but extremely long and curved (Pl. 8, Fig. 3a). The median depression is very wide and smooth.

Remarks. Several morphological characters observed in Ospreyella sp. (Europa Island) such as the structure of the median ramus and ramuli, the long and curved minor interbrachial lobes and the wide median depression suggest that this lacazelline brachiopod is in fact an Ospreyella species. Therefore, we place the specimens collected by the BENTHEDI - Cruise in the genus Ospreyella . Dall’s holotype of L. mauritiana was collected from Mauritius which is situated 1800 km east of Europa Island, but is now lost (Logan 2005) and thus a direct comparison is not possible at the current state. New material from the type locality of L. mauritiana has to be collected in order to reassess the assignation of L. mauritiana to the genus Lacazella and its relationship to the specimens investigated in this study from Europa Island.