Scleractinia

Löser, Hannes, Nieto, Luis M., Castro, José Manuel & Reolid, Matías, 2019, A Lower Valanginian coral fauna from the South Iberian Palaeomargin (Internal Prebetic, SE Spain), Palaeontologia Electronica (a 06) 24 (1), pp. 1-57 : 9-10

Order Scleractinia

As explained in previous publications (Löser et al., 2018; Löser and Heinrich, 2018), the classification of the order Scleractinia into suborders is neither practical nor possible. It was therefore proposed to apply superfamilies in place of suborders (Löser, 2016). Twenty-seven superfamilies with 56 families (or informal groups) are distinguished that have a range in the Cretaceous. In contrast to former classification systems based on suborders, the superfamilies may constitute monophyletic groups. The relationships between former suborders and superfamilies, as far as possible, are summarised in a table published in Löser (2016, fig. 5.1.1.7) and in Löser, Steuber and Löser (2018, fig. 7). The basic characteristics for the distinction of the superfamilies are the relative size of the trabeculae, in the ratio to the septa. Further distinction is made based on the presence or absence of synapticulae and the septal perforation, following traditional concepts proposed by Alloiteau (1952) and later authors.

The description of known taxa has been kept short. In Scleractinian corals, superfamilies, families, and genera are distinguished on the basis of qualitative characteristics whereas species are distinguished by quantitative characteristics. The description of two species of the same genus is therefore almost identical because the distinction of species is based on morphometric data such as corallite dimensions and septal counts.

Collection abbreviations are as follows:

ABP, Coll. Armin Bauer, Pressath, Germany;

BSPG, Bayerische Staatssammlung für Paläontologie und Geologie, München, Germany;

BUFGG, Bukarest University , Faculty of Geography and Geology , Bucharest, Romania ;

CAMSM, The Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences, Cambridge, UK;

CF, C. Fricot, private collection, Esclarolles-Lurey,

France;

CGS, Ceská geologická sluzba , Praha, Czech

Republic;

ERNO, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Geología, Estación Regional del

Noroeste, Hermosillo, Mexico;

FGUB, Facultad de Geología de la Universidad de

Barcelona, Spain;

FLH, Coll. Fritz Lang, Hirschaid, Germany;

FSL, Université Claude Bernard, Institut de Géologie, Lyon, France;

GPSL, Geologische und Paläontologische Sam-

mlung der Universität Leipzig, Germany ;

HJGL, Hans-Jürgen Gawlick, Leoben, Austria;

IGM, Instituto de Geología , Mexico City, Mexico ;

LFU, Landesamt für Umwelt, München, Germany;

MB, Museum für Naturkunde der Humboldt-Universität, Berlin, Germany ;

MGB, Museu de Geología de Barcelona, Spain;

MGL, Musée Géologique, Lausanne, Switzerland;

MGSB, Museo Geológico del Seminario de Barcelona, Spain;

MGU, Muzej zemlevedenia Moskovskogo Gosudarstvennogo Universiteta, Moskva, Russia ;

MHE, Matthias Heinrich, Eckental, Germany;

MHNG, Muséum d'histoire naturelle de la Ville de Genève, Switzerland ;

MHNN, Muséum d'Histoire naturelle de Neuchâtel, Switzerland ;

MJSN, Musée jurassien des Sciences naturelles, Porrentruy, Switzerland;

MNHN, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France;

NHM, The Natural History Museum, London, UK;

NMNH, National Museum of Natural History , Washington, D.C., USA ;

NSM, The National Science Museum , Tokyo, Japan ;

OKSB, Coll. O. Karousek, Stara Boleslav, Czech Republic;

PU, Museo di Geología e Paleontologia dell' Università di Torino, Italy;

RUB, Ruhr-Universität, Geologisches Institut, Bochum, Germany;

SGM, Coll. Moosleitner, Salzburg, Austria ;

SMNS, Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde, Stuttgart, Germany;

TMM, Texas Memorial Museum , Austin, Tex., USA ;

TUM, The Tohoku University Museum, Sendai, Japan;

TUMIG, Technische Universität München, Ingenieurgeologie, Germany;

UJ, Jagiellonian University, Instytut Nauk Geologicznych, Kraków, Poland;

UJDE, Universidad de Jáen, Departamento de Geología, Jaén, Spain;

UP, Université de Provence, Marseille, France;

UPS, Université Paul Sabatier, Laboratoire de Géologie Sédimentaire et Paléontologie, Toulouse, France;

ZPAL, Polish Academy of Sciences, Institute of Paleobiology, Warszawa, Poland.

The following abbreviations are used describ-

ing the dimensions of the corals:

c, calicular diameter (outer diameter);

ccd, distance between calicular centres;

cdw, distance between calicular centres within calicular series;

LÖSER ET AL.: SPANISH VALANGINIAN CORALS clmax, large lumen;

clmin, small lumen;

cmax, larger outer calicular diameter;

cmin, smaller outer calicular diameter;

crd, distance of calicular series;

s, number of septa in the adult corallite;

sd, density of septa.