Flabellum cuneiforme Lonsdale, 1845

Baron-Szabo, Rosemarie C., 2008, Dendrophylliina, Caryophylliina, Fungiina, Microsolenina, and Stylinina, Zootaxa 1952, pp. 1-244 : 88

Flabellum cuneiforme Lonsdale, 1845

Pl. 8, figs 1a, b

v*1845 Flabellum (?) cuneiforme: Lonsdale , p. 512.

v1864 Flabellum remondianum: Gabb , p. 207, pl. 26, fig. 199 (topotypes studied).

parsv1900 Flabellum cuneiforme Lonsdale : Vaughan, p. 60, pl. 3, fig. 10, non fig. 12 (older synonyms cited therein) (topotypes studied).

v1900 Flabellum remondianum Gabb : Vaughan, p. 67, pl. 4, figs 5, 6 (older synonyms cited therein) (topotypes studied).

Dimensions. d (min)=up to 12 mm; d (max)=up to 26.5 mm; d (min)/d (max)=0.4–0.6; h=up to 33 mm;

Description. Flabellate corallum, narrow to compressed in outline, septa developed in 4 size orders in adult stages; generally, septa of first two size orders reach axial region. Costae rather smooth and straight.

Remarks. In addition to accepting the variety Flabellum cuneiforme var. pachyphyllum, Vaughan (1900 , p. 62ff.) established another four varieties of F. cuneiforme : pachyphyllum, acutiforme, fragile, and wallesi. Vaughan based these new variations on differences in their morphological appearance like smoothness of external surface, compressed or wide appearance in cross view, thickness of epitheca, presence or absence of lateral wings, transverse lines of growth, and the lack or development of prominent costae. The main problem regarding Vaughan’s investigation occurs due to the fact that Vaughan (1900, pl. III, fig. 12) assigned a specimen to Flabellum cuneiforme Lonsdale which significantly differed from the holotype of F.cuneiforme Lonsdale in exactly these external features (compare figure of type of Flabellum cuneiforme Lonsdale in Vaughan, 1900, pl. III, fig. 10). If these two specimens of Flabellum cuneiforme Lonsdale figured by Vaughan were considered the same species, they would span the range of variation which included at least three of his described variations (pachyphyllum, acutiforme, and wallesi) as documented by Vaughan (1900, p. 62ff., pl. III, figs 13, 15, 19, and 23). While it cannot be decided in the current study how much, if at all, these characteristics were controlled by (paleo-) environmental factors, it can be stated that the type material of F. cuneiforme Lonsdale and F. remondianum Gabb (as given the synonmy list above) correspond to each other by having 4 septal size orders, a rather compressed corallum of d (min)/d (max) around 0.5, and rather smooth and straight costae. Therefore, they are considered to be synonymous.