Planutenia flectata Elicki, 1994

Skovsted, Christian B. & Peel, John S., 2007, Small shelly fossils from the argillaceous facies of the Lower Cambrian Forteau Formation of western Newfoundland, Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 52 (4), pp. 729-748 : 736-737

Planutenia flectata Elicki, 1994

Fig. 4G, H.

1994 Planutenia flectata sp. nov.; Elicki 1994: 81, fig. 5−1, 12.

1994 Planutenia inclinata sp. nov.; Elicki 1994: 82, fig. 5−2, 13.

1996 Planutenia flectata Elicki, 1994 ; Elicki 1996: 151, fig. 2, pl. 5: 1, 2, 4.

1996 Planutenia inclinata Elicki, 1994 ; Elicki 1996: 151, fig. 3, pl. 5: 3, 5–9.

Holotype: FG 410 /3. Internal mould from the Upper Ludwigsdorf Member, Görlitz, eastern Germany.

Type species: Planutenia flectata Elicki, 1994 .

Material.— NFM− 688, NFM− 689, and six additional specimens from samples ICS 1518 and JSP1982−01.

Discussion.—Laterally compressed internal moulds of helcionelloid molluscs with a strongly overhanging apex and a large, hemicircular protoconch recall Planutenia from the upper Lower Cambrian of eastern Germany and the probably related Stenotheca emeiensis Yu, 1987 from North China ( Feng et al. 1994). Elicki (1994, 1996) described seven specimens of two co−occurring species of Planutenia , P. flectata , and P. inclinata , but the differences between these forms are very slight and are likely to be artefacts of variation or preservation. Parkhaev (in Gravestock et al. 2001) synonomised Planutenia with Anabarella Vostokova, 1962 , but Planutenia differs from the similarly compressed Anabarella by its lower rate of whorl expansion and the larger protoconch.

Stratigraphic and geographic range.—Lower Cambrian of eastern Germany and western Newfoundland.