Crinoid Paleoecology

Crinoid Paleoecology

Geology 632: Paleoecology

Echinoderms: 21 classes (16 extinct) including:

• Crinoids• Blastoids• Cystoids• Edrioasteroids• Asteroids• Ophiuroids• Echinoids• Holothurians

Crinoid Blastoid

Cystoid

Edrioasteroid

AsteroidOphiuroid

Echinoids:

sand dollar (left)

sea biscuit (below)

Holothurian: sea cucumber

Classification of Crinoids• Paleozoic Crinoids

– Subclass Camerata: pinnulate arms– Subclass Disparida: nonpinnulate arms– Subclass Cladida: pinnulate and nonpinnulate– Subclass Flexibilia: nonpinnulate arms

• Mesozoic and Cenozoic Crinoids– Subclass Articulata: pinnulate arms

• Isocrinids - stalked• Comatulids - free living

Examples of Mississippian Crinoid Clades

A. Camerate crinoid with pinnulate arms. Abatocrinus grandis

B. Disparid crinoid with non-pinnulate arms. Synbathocrinus swallovi

C. Advanced cladid crinoid with pinnulate arms. Decadocrinus tumidulus

D. Primitive cladid crinoid with non-pinnulate arms. Cyathocrinites barydactylus

E. Flexible crinoid with non-pinnulate arms. Onychocrinus ulrichi

Actinocrinites: a camerate; note the pinnulate arms

Cyathocrinites, a primitive cladid with nonpinnulate arms

Actinocrinites and Barycrinus, Mississippian

Diversity of crinoid genera over geologic time. High modern

diversity is a taphonomic artifact.

Encrinus, the survivor of the

Permian extinction

event, founder of the

Articulata

Endoxocrinus at a depth of 692 m, Bahamas

Cenocrinus, 310 m, Bahamas

Endoxocrinus, 430 m, Bahamas

Endoxocrinus and ophiuroids, 573 m, Bahamas

Neocrinus, 424 m, Bahamas

Neocrinus, 424 m, Bahamas. Current = 20cm/s

Neocrinus, 424 m, Bahamas

Tube feet on the pinnules of crinoid arms

Modern comatulid crinoids, Bahamas

Modern comatulid crinoids, Bahamas

Living basketstar: convergent evolution on Paleozoic nonpinnulate crinoids

Crinoid Faunas

Osagean-Meramecian stratigraphy and time intervals for crinoids

1.B o o nv ille

2 .C la rk C o .

3 .Ke o k uk

4 .Wa rs a w

5 .N a uv o o

6 .H a m ilt o n

7 .U.Q ua rry

8 .L.Q ua rry9 .India nC rk10 .Wa ldrip

11.B o yS c o ut

12 .A lle ns C rk

13 .B M K

14 .KY S o lit e

15 .Whit e s C rk

- 0 .4 - 0 .3 - 0 .2 - 0 .1 0 0 .1 0 .2 0 .3

C o o rdina t e 1

- 0 .2

- 0 .1

0

0 .1

0 .2

0 .3

0 .4

Coo

rdin

ate

2

MDS Plot, K&A, 1987, Table 1 data (species counts)

Stress = 0.06

Low Energy Facies

High Energy Facies

Carbonate Facies

M O N O

D IS P A RC Y A T H O

P O T E R

F LE X

1.B o o nv ille

2 .C la rk C o .

3 .Ke o k uk

4 .Wa rs a w

5 .N a uv o o 6 .H a m ilto n

7 .U.Q ua rry

8 .L.Q ua rry

9 .India nC rk

10 .Wa ldrip

11.B o yS c o ut

12 .A lle ns C rk

13 .B M K

14 .KY S o lit e

15 .Whit e s C rk

- 0 .0 2 4 - 0 .0 16 - 0 .0 0 8 0 0 .0 0 8 0 .0 16 0 .0 2 4 0 .0 3 2 0 .0 4

A xis 1

- 0 .0 3

- 0 .0 2 4

- 0 .0 18

- 0 .0 12

- 0 .0 0 6

0

0 .0 0 6

0 .0 12

0 .0 18

Axi

s 2

CA Plot, K&A, 1987, Table 1 data (species counts)

Low Energy Facies

High Energy Facies

Carbonate Facies

= ADV. CLADIDS

= PRIM. CLADIDS

New Providence Shale at Button

Mold Knob, near Louisville, KY.

Low-energy facies. First Paleozoic

fossils west of the Appalachians were

collected here in 1816.

Crinoidal debris weathering from the New Providence Shale, Kentucky

Crinoid stem in the New Providence Shale, KY

The lower Warsaw Fm., Keokuk, Iowa. Mixed carbonates and clastics.

Mississippian limestone bluffs along the Mississippi River in Illinois. Carbonate platform.

Burlington and Keokuk limestones, Iowa. Carbonate platform environment.

Crinoidal bioherm, Fort Payne Fm., Kentucky. Organic carbonate buildups.

Crinoidal limestone, Fort Payne Fm.

Crinoid calyces in the Fort Payne Fm.

Upper Warsaw Fm., St. Louis, MO. Cross-bedded limestones: high energy environment

Closeup of cross-bedded limestones.

Examples of Mississippian

crinoids: various species of

Cyathocrinites, a nonpinnulate

cladid

Examples of Mississippian

crinoids: various

species of Barycrinus, a nonpinnulate

cladid

Various species of pinnulate

cladid crinoids

Various species of pinnulate cladid

crinoids

The camerate crinoid

Agaricocrinus

The camerate crinoid,

Dizygocrinus