Asaphida

Asaphellus aristous

Order Asaphida / Superfamily Asaphoidea / Family Asaphidae

Tremadocian (Early Ordovician)Hunan

Asaphellus aristous — photo 1 — Photo 1 · Holotype HT8197 (Hunan; Liu Yiren 1982) Restoration (illustrated by Zhou Quan) Slab specimen (Hunan; Zhou Quan) (Hunan; Pengcheng Jianke) (Hunan; Jiaoshi Shidi)

Asaphellus aristous — photo 2 — Photo 2 · Holotype HT8197 (Hunan; Liu Yiren 1982) Restoration (illustrated by Zhou Quan) Slab specimen (Hunan; Zhou Quan) (Hunan; Pengcheng Jianke) (Hunan; Jiaoshi Shidi)

Asaphellus aristous — photo 3 — Photo 3 · Holotype HT8197 (Hunan; Liu Yiren 1982) Restoration (illustrated by Zhou Quan) Slab specimen (Hunan; Zhou Quan) (Hunan; Pengcheng Jianke) (Hunan; Jiaoshi Shidi)

Asaphellus aristous — photo 4 — Photo 4 · Holotype HT8197 (Hunan; Liu Yiren 1982) Restoration (illustrated by Zhou Quan) Slab specimen (Hunan; Zhou Quan) (Hunan; Pengcheng Jianke) (Hunan; Jiaoshi Shidi)

Asaphellus aristous — photo 5 — Photo 5 · Holotype HT8197 (Hunan; Liu Yiren 1982) Restoration (illustrated by Zhou Quan) Slab specimen (Hunan; Zhou Quan) (Hunan; Pengcheng Jianke) (Hunan; Jiaoshi Shidi)

Classification

Order Asaphida / Superfamily Asaphoidea / Family Asaphidae

Genus

Asaphellus Callaway, 1877

Genus author

Callaway C.

Genus etymology

Asaph-, Asaphus, a trilobite genus name; -ellus, a diminutive suffix

Species

A. aristous Liu, 1982

Species author

Liu Yiren

Species etymology

aristo-, Greek, most noble

Age

Tremadocian (Early Ordovician)

Distribution

Hunan

Diagnosis

Cephalon semicircular; glabella weakly convex, glabellar and occipital furrows indistinct; preglabellar field wide and flat; eyes small, close to the glabella; anterior branches of facial sutures first extending obliquely forward, then strongly recurved inward, meeting on the anterior median line; posterior branches short; librigenae wide with strong genal spines. Thorax of 8 segments; axis slightly tapering backward, gradually narrower than pleurae; pleural furrows short, pleural spines absent. Pygidium semicircular; axis faint, narrow and long; border wide and flat, border furrow indistinct.