Asaphida

Monkaspis sp. 2

Order Asaphida / Superfamily Uncertain / Family Monkaspidae

Guzhangian (Miaolingian, Cambrian)Shandong

Monkaspis sp. 2 — photo 1 — Photo 1 · Greek, shield Complete dorsal exoskeleton Complete dorsal exoskeleton Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Shandong; Huakai Fugui) (Shandong; Pengcheng Jianke) (Shandong; Baishui) Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Shandong; Lixia)

Monkaspis sp. 2 — photo 2 — Photo 2 · Greek, shield Complete dorsal exoskeleton Complete dorsal exoskeleton Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Shandong; Huakai Fugui) (Shandong; Pengcheng Jianke) (Shandong; Baishui) Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Shandong; Lixia)

Monkaspis sp. 2 — photo 3 — Photo 3 · Greek, shield Complete dorsal exoskeleton Complete dorsal exoskeleton Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Shandong; Huakai Fugui) (Shandong; Pengcheng Jianke) (Shandong; Baishui) Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Shandong; Lixia)

Monkaspis sp. 2 — photo 4 — Photo 4 · Greek, shield Complete dorsal exoskeleton Complete dorsal exoskeleton Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Shandong; Huakai Fugui) (Shandong; Pengcheng Jianke) (Shandong; Baishui) Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Shandong; Lixia)

Classification

Order Asaphida / Superfamily Uncertain / Family Monkaspidae

Genus

Monkaspis Kobayashi, 1935

Genus author

Kobayashi T.

Genus etymology

Monk, a surname, in honour of the early Chinese trilobite researcher, the German scholar H. Monke; aspis,

Species

Monkaspis sp. 2

Species author

Species etymology

Age

Guzhangian (Miaolingian, Cambrian)

Distribution

Shandong

Diagnosis

This species occurs in the Damesella paronai horizon. Dorsal shield smooth. Cephalon subrectangular; glabella conical with three pairs of faint glabellar furrows, a pair of ovate lateral lobes at the posterior part of the glabella; eyes small, very prominent, opposite the anterior part of the glabella; eye ridges faint; preglabellar field short; anterior border wide. Thorax of 12 segments; axis slightly narrower than pleurae; pleural ends becoming progressively sharper posteriorly. Pygidium semi-elliptical, axis conical with 5 rings and a terminal piece; 15 or 16 serrate pygidial spines, the 7 lateral pairs longer.

Remarks

The pygidium of this species closely resembles those of Monkaspis serrata (Chu, 1959) and M. zhongyangensis Zhang & Wang, 1985, and it may be conspecific with one of them.