Acanthocrania sp.

Sun, Yuanlin & Baliński, Andrzej, 2008, Silicified Mississippian brachiopods from Muhua, southern China: Lingulids, craniids, strophomenids, productids, orthotetids, and orthids, Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 53 (3), pp. 485-524 : 494

Acanthocrania sp.

Fig. 5J.

Material.—One fragmentary dorsal valve.

Remarks.—Although the single specimen is poorly preserved, it shows quite satisfactory a characteristic elements of its external ornament. These are sublamellose, slightly irregular growth lines and fairly large, stout hollow spines of various diameters, rather loosely scattered at high angle to the valve surface. Internal surface of the valve is densely punctate. A pair of very large anterior adductor scars is situated near apex.

Because of incompleteness of the material the specimen here described cannot be compared with confidence to any known species. However, the character and distribution of spines is very reminiscent that of Acanthocrania regularis Cooper and Grant, 1974 from the Middle Permian (Capitanian) of Texas (see Cooper and Grant 1974: 244–255, pl. 30: 20–24).

Stratigraphic and geographic range.— The single specimen described here comes from sample GB.