Fistulipora timorensis Bassler, 1929

Ernst, Andrej, Senowbari-Daryan, Baba & Hamedani, Ali, 2006, Middle Permian Bryozoa from the Lakaftari area, northeast of Esfahan (central Iran), Geodiversitas 28 (4), pp. 543-590 : 548

Fistulipora timorensis Bassler, 1929 ( Fig. 2F, H, K, M ; Table 2)

Fistulipora timorensis Bassler, 1929: 44 , pl. 3, figs 4- 9. — Sakagami 1968b: 50, 51, pl. 6, figs 1-3; 1999: 81, 82, pl. 18, figs 1-3. — Morozova 1970a: 63, 64, pl. 2, fig. 1. — Kiseleva 1982: 53, 54, pl. 1, fig. 1. — Xia 1991: 188, 189, pl. 7, figs 6, 7.

Fistulipora cf. timorensis – Sakagami 1961: 16, pl. 1, figs 1-8; 1995: 242, fig. 9-3, 4. — Sakagami in Yanagida 1988: pl. 12, figs 1-3.

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — 4-8-1, 4-8-5, 4-8-6, 5-2, 10-2-1, 10-2-2, 10-2-3, 10-2-4, 10-2-6, 10-2-7, 23-4, 25-10-3.

OCCURRENCE. — Lakaftari: central Iran, Jamal Formation, Middle Permian. Fistulipora timorensis is apparently widely distributed in Lower to Upper Permian rocks of the Tethys region. It was reported from Timor ( Bassler 1929), Thailand ( Sakagami 1968b; Sakagami in Yanagida 1988), Khabarovsk region ( Morozova 1970a), Primorye ( Kiseleva 1982), Xizang, China ( Xia 1991), and Bolivia ( Sakagami 1995).

DESCRIPTION

Encrusting colonies, 0.9-1.5 mm thick. Autozooecia bud from a substrate at low angles. Autozooecial apertures rounded, having well developed, horseshoeshaped lunaria, spaced 3.5-4.5 in 2 mm. Autozooecial diaphragms rare to absent in short autozooecia (usually developed at their bases), abundant in longer autozooecia, complete, thin, deflected orally.Vesicles polygonal in tangential section, arranged in 1-3 rows between autozooecia (commonly two rows), having flat or slightly concave roofs, spaced 8-9 per 1 mm of the colony thickness. Maculae consisting of vesicular skeleton, rounded, 0.96-1.50 mm in diameter, spaced regularly on the colony surface. Lunaria of adjacent apertures directed towards maculae centre; autozooecia arranged radially around central point of a macula ( Fig. 2M ).

COMPARISON

Fistulipora timorensis differs from F.monticulosa in having larger apertures (0.35 vs.0.29 mm in F. monticulosa averagely), as well as in the absence of tubular colonies. Fistulipora sp.described below has larger apertures (0.46 vs. 0.35 mm in F.timorensis averagely). F. timorensis is also similar to F. siamensis Sakagami, 1999 , from the Middle Permian of Thailand. The two species may be conspecific, because the only difference with F.siamensis mentioned by Sakagami (1999) is the abundant basal diaphragms.The number of basal diaphragms can vary greatly in Palaeozoic stenolaemate bryozoans.

Figures

FIG. 2. — A, B, D, E, G, Fistulipora monticulosa Nikiforova, 1933; A, 5, cylindrical colony; B, 5-9-3, tangential section; D, 5-11-1, thin section through cylindrical colony; E, 5-9-3, longitudinal section of encrusting colony;G, 5-11-1, tangential section;C, J, L, Fistulipora sp.; C, 4-16-5, longitudinal section of encrusting colony; J, 4-16-3, tangential section; L, 4-16-3, tangential section; F, H, K, M, Fistulipora timorensis Bassler, 1929; F, 10-2-2, longitudinal section; H, K, 25-10-3, tangential section; M, 7-3-2, deep tangential section of macula center; I, N, Fistuliporidae indet. (?Eridopora); I, 4-8-11, longitudinal section; N, 19-4-2, tangential section. Scale bars: A, 10 mm; B, E, 1 mm; C, G-I, K-N, 0.5 mm; D, 3 mm; F, 0.05 mm; J, 0.2 mm.