Phacopida

Quadrops flexuosa

Order Phacopida / Suborder Phacopina / Superfamily Acastoidea / Family Acastidae / Subfamily Asteropyginae

Emsian (Early Devonian)Morocco
Quadrops flexuosa — photo 1
Photo 1 · Front of the cephalon extended into four flat, slightly inward-curved spines; glabella with short vertical spinules and three pairs of glabellar furrows; occipital spine stout, curved backward; palpebral lobes with vertical backward-curved spinules; proparian facial sutures; librigenae narrow; fixigenae with stout genal spines and a pair of small spinules on the posterior border. Thorax of 11 segments; axial spines from segment 3 onward; pleurae with vertical spinules and long pleural spines. Pygidium large; 8 axial rings with axial spines; anterior three pairs of pleural segments with vertical spinules; 5 pairs of long marginal spines plus a median short spine, the anterior two pairs strongly curved. Holotype (Morocco; Morzadec 2001) Slab with complete dorsal exoskeletons (Morocco; Li Nan) Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Morocco; Ting Richu)
Quadrops flexuosa — photo 2
Photo 2 · Front of the cephalon extended into four flat, slightly inward-curved spines; glabella with short vertical spinules and three pairs of glabellar furrows; occipital spine stout, curved backward; palpebral lobes with vertical backward-curved spinules; proparian facial sutures; librigenae narrow; fixigenae with stout genal spines and a pair of small spinules on the posterior border. Thorax of 11 segments; axial spines from segment 3 onward; pleurae with vertical spinules and long pleural spines. Pygidium large; 8 axial rings with axial spines; anterior three pairs of pleural segments with vertical spinules; 5 pairs of long marginal spines plus a median short spine, the anterior two pairs strongly curved. Holotype (Morocco; Morzadec 2001) Slab with complete dorsal exoskeletons (Morocco; Li Nan) Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Morocco; Ting Richu)
Quadrops flexuosa — photo 3
Photo 3 · Front of the cephalon extended into four flat, slightly inward-curved spines; glabella with short vertical spinules and three pairs of glabellar furrows; occipital spine stout, curved backward; palpebral lobes with vertical backward-curved spinules; proparian facial sutures; librigenae narrow; fixigenae with stout genal spines and a pair of small spinules on the posterior border. Thorax of 11 segments; axial spines from segment 3 onward; pleurae with vertical spinules and long pleural spines. Pygidium large; 8 axial rings with axial spines; anterior three pairs of pleural segments with vertical spinules; 5 pairs of long marginal spines plus a median short spine, the anterior two pairs strongly curved. Holotype (Morocco; Morzadec 2001) Slab with complete dorsal exoskeletons (Morocco; Li Nan) Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Morocco; Ting Richu)
Quadrops flexuosa — photo 4
Photo 4 · Front of the cephalon extended into four flat, slightly inward-curved spines; glabella with short vertical spinules and three pairs of glabellar furrows; occipital spine stout, curved backward; palpebral lobes with vertical backward-curved spinules; proparian facial sutures; librigenae narrow; fixigenae with stout genal spines and a pair of small spinules on the posterior border. Thorax of 11 segments; axial spines from segment 3 onward; pleurae with vertical spinules and long pleural spines. Pygidium large; 8 axial rings with axial spines; anterior three pairs of pleural segments with vertical spinules; 5 pairs of long marginal spines plus a median short spine, the anterior two pairs strongly curved. Holotype (Morocco; Morzadec 2001) Slab with complete dorsal exoskeletons (Morocco; Li Nan) Complete dorsal exoskeleton (Morocco; Ting Richu)
Classification
Order Phacopida / Suborder Phacopina / Superfamily Acastoidea / Family Acastidae / Subfamily Asteropyginae
Genus
Quadrops Morzadec, 2001
Genus author
Morzadec P.
Genus etymology
quadr-, four, referring to the four spines at the front of the cephalon; ops, Greek, eye
Species
Q. flexuosa Morzadec, 2001
Species author
Morzadec P.
Species etymology
flexuosa, tortuous, referring to the curved shape of the pygidial spines
Age
Emsian (Early Devonian)
Distribution
Morocco
Remarks
This species is the type species of the genus Quadrops.