Xiphocladiella Deflandre, 1973

Noble, Paula, Aitchison, Jonathan C., Danelian, Taniel, Dumitrica, Paulian, Maletz, Jörg, Suzuki, Noritoshi, Cuvelier, Jessie, Caridroit, Martial & O’Dogherty, Luis, 2017, Taxonomy of Paleozoic radiolarian genera, Geodiversitas 39 (3), pp. 419-502 : 431

Xiphocladiella Deflandre, 1973

Xiphocladiella Deflandre, 1973a: 499 ; 1960 (nomen nudum).

TYPE SPECIES. — Xiphocladiella cuja Deflandre, 1960 ( Deflandre 1960: 216, pl. 1, fig. 27 [nomen nudum]); Deflandre 1973a: 291, pl. 4, figs 1-3.

AGE AND LOCATION OF TYPE MATERIAL. — Visean, Cabrières, Hérault, Montagne Noire, France.

TAXON CODE. — 042.

STATUS. — Valid.

DIAGNOSIS. — “Squelette composé d’un long spicule axial tricostulé, dont la partie supérieure, sur la moitié environ, est très élargie puis se rétrécit progressivement; zone médiane ornée de quelques cornes minces, diversement orientées; extrémité inférieure se terminant par quelques cornes, droites ou recourbées, parfois ramifiées.” ( Deflandre 1973b: 499).

DIAGNOSIS (English translation by J. P. Caulet – RadWorld database). — “Skeleton consisting of a long tricostulate axial spike, the upper part, on about half, is very broad and tapers; middle area adorned with a few thin horns, variously oriented; lower end terminating in a few horns, straight or curved, sometimes branched.”

REMARKS

In the slide BD54, R45/3 of Deflandre’s collection, there is a very well preserved specimen (the holotype) that proves that it is a ceratoikiscid. The left side is broken off and the ribs are weakly developed. This specimen shows its structure better when the slide is observed upside down (located F45/3). Another specimen, even better preserved, that proves the ceratoikiscid nature, is in the slide BD 82, G37/4. It has two main pairs of ribs and one pair shorter. Re-examination of these specimens suggests that both Xiphocladiella cuja and Xiphachistrella acipiens are ceratoikiscids and may possibly belong to the same species, but for now only Xiphachistrella is synonymized with Ceratiokiscum.

Order ARCHAEOSPICULARIA Dumitrica, Caridroit & De Wever, 2000 Family ARCHEOENTACTINIIDAE Won & Below, 1999