52. Distribution O F Cambrian Trilobites in the Peri.Gondwana Seas

Home , Dorypygidae, Kootenia, Oryctocephalus, Paradoxididae

No. 4] Proc. Japan Acad., 52 (1976) 187

52. Distribution of Cambrian Trilobites in the Peri.Gondwana Seas

By Teiichi KOBAYASHI, M. J. A.

(Comm. April 12, 1976)

It was in 1937 that I have presented a paper on the late Cam- brian-early Ordovician provincialization to the XVII International Geologic Congress. At that time I have distinguished Olenedian, western and eastern Pacific provinces in the late Cambrian epoch. The tripartation of the early Cambrian biosphere into the Olenellian, Redlichian and intermediate provinces was detailed in 1971 and 1972. Now the above subject is taken up with reference to the peri-Gondwana seas. In 1949 I have pointed out that the Glyptagnostus life range was the oldest world instant in the Phanerozoic eon. Now, the agnostidians are greatly evaluated for the interprovincial correlation, in addition to isolated occurrences of the Paradoxididae, particularly Centropleura and certain Olenidian genera as strangers or colonies outside the Paradoxidian and Olenedian provinces, probably due to possibility of rapid migration by pelagic life or meroplanktonic dispersal mainly through geosynclines. These exotic trilobites are generally contained in the Machari facies in Eastern Asia, as pointed out in 1943. Their facies bearing was further elucidated in North America by Lochman and Wilson (1958). These trilobites as well as local or regional genera within a province will be excluded in the study of provincialization. Important keys to the purpose are among polymeric trilobites. The Lower Cambrian of South America is represented by the Fremontella bearing fauna in northwest Argentina allied to the upper Olenellus fauna of eastern North America (Borello, 1971). In the Lower Cambrian formation of South Australia there are the Yorkella australis and Pararaia tatei horizons below and the Estaingia and Emuella containing Redlichia beds above. Redlichia is widely distributed not only in this continent but also in Eastern and Southern Asia as far as the Dead Sea region where Redlichia (Redli- cops) occurs. This is the well known Redlichian province. In further west in the Mediterranean region redlichiids are found together with various olenellids in Morocco and Spain, although the former is not so common as the latter. Thus the Mediterranean region was the intermediate province between the Redlichian and Olenellian provinces. 188 T. KOBAYASHI [Vol. 52,

Although little is known of the Potsdamian trilobites, five species of Paradoxides are reported from Morocco beside Centropleura sp. Paradoxides sp. was found in the Cordillera Orientalis, Colombia, but it is an exotic member, because it is accompanied by Ehmania and because, as listed below, other Middle Cambrian trilobite genera of South America are known also from North America, if endemic genera are excluded. Dorypygidae : Dorypyge ( ?), Kootenia, Olenoides (?) Oryctocephalidae : Oryctocephalus Dolichometopidae : Glossopleura Zacanthoididae : Zacanthoides Alokistoearidae : Alokistocare, Kistocare, Alokistocarella, Ame- cephalina, Ehmania Asaphiscidae : Asaphiscus (or Eteraspis) Menomonidae : Bolaspidella Among them Dorypyge, Kootenia, Oryctocephalus and Alokisto- care occur in Eastern Asia. They are followed by Croixan genera, such as Irvingella, Elvinia, Hungaia (?) and Tricrepicephalus. Thus not only the Fremontella fauna, but the Middle and Upper Cambrian trilobites of the continent are closely related to the North American faunas. In Australia the Middle Cambrian fauna contains X ystridura, Oryctocephalus, Amphoton and other trilobites showing close affinities to the Eastern Asiatic fauna. Centropleura which occurs higher in the Lejopyge laevigata zone is an exception which is unknown in Eastern Asia. The Oryctocephalidae are distributed extensively on the two sides of the Pacific but totally absent in Europe and North Africa. The late Middle to early Upper Cambrian trilobites of Queensland are intimately related to the Kushanian trilobites of Eastern Asia as represented by Damesella, Blackwelderia, Paedotes (or Drepanura ketteleri group) and so forth, including Stephanocare richtho f eni. The post-Kushanian faunal change is equally strong in Australia as in Eastern Asia. The Idamean fauna containing Glyptagnostus reticulatus, Olenus, Proceratopyge and a komaspid is evidently allied to the upper Machari fauna and penecontemporaneous to the Paishanian. The fauna of the Gora beds in Queensland containing Kaolishania, Mansuyia, Paraman- suyella and Kaolishaniella is certainly allied to the Daizanian fauna of Eastern Asia, although the R,ichardsonellinae are unrepresented in the Daizanian fauna. The Payntonian and sub-Payntonian faunas of Queensland contain Koldinioidia, Wuhuia, Prosaukia, Andersonella, Sinosaukia, Asioptychaspis, Maladioidella, Haniwa, Mansuyia, Para- koldinioidia, Pagodia, Tsinania and Dictyites, mostly Fengshanian No. 4] Cambrian Trilobites in Peri-Gondwana Seas 189 genera and partly Daizanian ones in Eastern Asia, beside Wanwanian W anwanaspis (Shergold, 1971, 1975). In short, the Australian Cambrian faunas are most closely related to the contemporaneous faunas of Eastern Asia, although some co- existent genera reveal American affinities and some others of the Atlantic aspect appear intermittently. Cambrian trilobites from the Weddell sea including the Redlichiidae, X ystridura, Amphoton and others are in age from early Cambrian to late Middle Cambrian. According to Palmer (1973) , there are almost no Antarctic trilobite genera shared with the Cambrian faunas of South America. Cam- brian trilobites of New Zealand consists of Paradoxidian agnostids and western Pacific polymerids such as Amphoton, Dorypyge, Soleno- paria and Pap yriaspis. Upper Cambrian trilobites in the Burmese-Malayan geosyncline are links of the Australian faunas to those of Eastern and Southern Asia. In the Parahio section of Spiti, Himalaya, Oryctocephalus is reported from two horizons the lower one of which contains Pagetia. In Kashmir Tonkinella and Bailiella are two distinct trilobites of the northern hemisphere. The former is widely spread in Asia, but uncommon in Europe, while the latter is rather confined in Asia. Both of them are unknown from Australia. Little is known of the Upper Cambrian of the Himalaya except for Paishanian Billingsella in Karakorum. Middle and Upper Cambrian faunas are well represented in North Iran by Dorypyge, Drepanura, Chuangia, Koldiniella and Essei- gania (Kushan, 1973) where the last two are North Asiatic genera unknown either in Eastern Asia or Australia. Drepanura is recorded from Sweden and Dorypyge is distributed widely in Europe but not so common as in Eastern Asia and unknown from North Africa. The Middle Cambrian trilobites of Turkey bear already the Paradoxidian aspects. In conclusion it can be said at present that in the Cambrian period there were three trilobite provinces around the Gondwanaland. Namely the Olenellian, Redlichian and intermediate provinces in the early Cambrian epoch were upheld into the later Cambrian times when they were called respectively the Paradoxidian-Olenidian (or north Atlantic), western Pacific and eastern Pacific province, insofar as the peri-Gondwana seas are concerned. Broadly speaking, a half of the Gondwanaland was fringed by the west Pacific epiric sea and the remaining quarters by the north Atlantic and east Pacific seas. This means that the Redlichian sea in the restored Cambrian Gondwanaland in Figure 3, Palmer, 1972,. 190 T. KOSAYASHI [Vol. 52, extended from Lat. 50° S (Dead Sea) to Lat. 40° N (Queensland. Arch- aeocyathid reefs suggesting warm sea were developed from Australia toward Antarctica, but depauparated in the South Asiatic side which extended longitudinally through the palaeo-equator and developed again in Morocco near the Cambrian south pole in the intermediate province. Assuming that the above Cambrian equator was extended into Eur-Asia through the east end of Peninsular India (see his Fig. 4), salt deposits in Iran and India are between Lat. 20°-40° S. In closing I record my best thanks to Prof. I. Hayami of Uni- versity Museum, University of Tokyo for his kind assistance in pre- paration of this paper.

References

Borello, A. V. (1971) : The Cambrian of South America. C. H. Holland (ed.) : Cambrian of the New World, p. 385-438. Kobayashi, T. (1943) : Outline of the Cambrian System in the Yangtze Basin. Proc. Imp. Acad., 19, p. 252-6, 591-7, 677-8. -- (1944) : Zoopalaeogeographic Province in the Upper Cambrian and Lower Ordovician Periods. Japan. Jour. Geol. Georg., ,19, p.19-26; Abstr. of Papers, Intern. XVIII Geol. Congr. Moscow-Leningrad, 1937, p. 23. (1967) : The Cambrian of Eastern Asia and other Parts of the Continent. Jour. Fac. Sci. Univ. Tokyo, Sec. 2, 16, pt. 3, p. 381-534. (1971) : The Cambro-Ordovician Faunal Provinces and their Interprovin- cial Correlation. Ibid., 18, pt. 1, p. 129-299. (1972) : Three Faunal Provinces in the early Cambrian Period. Proc. Japan Acad., 48, no. 4, p. 242-7. Palmer, A. R. (1973) : Problems of Cambrian Biogeography. 24th Intern. Geol. Congr. Sec. 7, p. 310-315. -- (1973) : Cambrian Trilobites . A. Hallam (Ed.) : Atlas of Palaeobiogeo- graphy, p. 3-11. Shergold, J. H. (1971) : Late Upper Cambrian Trilobites from the Gora Beds, Queensland. Bureau Min. Resources, Geol. Geophy. Bull., ,112, 87 p., 19 pls. (1975) : Late Cambrian and Early Ordovician Trilobites from Burke River Structural Belt, Western Queensland, Australia. Ibid. Bull., 153, p. 1-251, 1 table, 58 pls. See Kobayashi, 1967 & 1971 for other references.