Australosutura Campbell & Goldring

Vanderlaan, Tegan A. & Ebach, Malte C., 2015, A review of the Carboniferous and Permian trilobites of Australia, Zootaxa 3926 (1), pp. 1-56 : 16

Genus Australosutura Campbell & Goldring in Amos et al. 1960

1960 Australosutura Campbell & Goldring ; p. 229–230. 1969 Australosutura ; Hahn & Hahn, p. 14.

1992 Australosutura ; Engel & Morris, p. 88.

Type species. Cordania gardneri Mitchell 1922 .

Emended diagnosis. Glabella nodose, subcylindrical with prominent basal lobes; S1 and S2 distinct, anteriorly placed; preglabellar field very steep close to the glabella, with nodular ornamentation; eyes short, sublunate, strongly convex; genal spines long with median channel; β and ω considerable distance from dorsal furrow; anterior and posterior fixigenae long and wide. Nine thoracic segments.Pygidium with up to 16 axial rings, nine pleural ribs; segment bands with a row of nodes.

Remarks. The diagnosis in Engel & Morris (1992) describes in detail the ornamentation of the cephalon. The emended diagnosis is a more succinct description. Australosutura was first erected by Campbell & Goldring 1960 to encompass material described by Mitchell (1922; 1924), and newly found material from Argentina. Since then a number of species from North America, Europe and China have been assigned to this genus ( Brezinski 1998; Yuan & Xiang 1998). Specimens appear to be from the Tournaisian to Viséan, however, ages of both the Argentinian and Australian material are uncertain ( Amos et al. 1960). Australosutura is most similar to the genera Cordania and Brachymetopus , but differs from Cordania in having a longer glabella and a shorter, steeper preglabellar field, as well as a much longer pygidium. Australosutura differs from Brachymetopus in that it has facial sutures and a longer glabella ( Amos et al. 1960).

Species included. Australosutura gardneri ( Mitchell 1922) , Australosutura argentinensis Hahn & Hahn 1969 , Australosutura campbelli Engel & Morris 1992 , Australosutura georgiana Rich 1966 , Australosutura aff. gardneri Ormiston 1966 , Australosutura spinosus ( Herrick 1888) , Australosutura osagensis Brezinski 2007 , Australosutura llanoensis Brezinski 1998 , Australosutura elegans ( Girty 1915) , Australosutura lodiensis ( Meek 1875) , Australosutura strattonporterae ( Rowley 1908) , Australosutura rustica ( Hyde 1953) , Australosutura asiatica Yuan & Xiang 1998

Age and distribution. Tournaisian to Viséan in Australia, China, North America and South America ( Amos et al. 1960, Ormiston 1966, Yuan & Xiang 1998).