Contributions to Zoology, 72 (2-3) 161-163 (2003)

SPB Academic Publishing bv, The Plague

A ?carcineretid from Lower Turonian () black shales of

Misburg, Hannover area (Germany)

Christian NeumannI 1 & John+W.M. Jagt2

1Museum fur Naturkunde, Humboldt Universitdt Berlin, Invalidenstrasse 43, D-10115 Berlin, Germany;

2 Natuurhistorisch Museum Maastricht, de Bosquetplein 6-7, P.O. Box 882, NL-6200AW Maastricht,

the Netherlands

Keywords: Crustacea, , Carcineretidae, Turonian, Germany

Abstract The accompanying label states, ‘cf. Portunus

holsatus Fabricius. Turonian Black shales; Han-

and if Althoughpoorly preserved missing most, not all, carapace noversche Portland Cement, Fabrik II. Turon; Sa-

features that would allow for a assignment at the generic proper propel-Lage, Misburg; leg. Schumacher 22.11.75. level, think crab in the collections of we a (Fig. 1) contained The specimen is in the G. Ernst Collection, for- the late Professor Gundolf Ernst warrants a short description, if merly at the Freie Universitat Berlin, now at the only in view of its preservational style. Museum fiir Naturkunde (Humboldt Universitat,

Berlin). The late Dr R. Forster appears to have

checked the Introduction specimen (30 January 1976) cursorily, and noted; ‘j Portunus sp., Schwimmkrabbe, Unter-

seite’ (= Portunus swimming crab, lower side). The brief description is distilled from observations sp.,

on the specimen in question made by Professor R.M.

Feldmann State Ohio), dur- (Kent University, Kent, Strata the ing an earlier visit to Humboldt Museum, and

detail ourselves. Preservation is poor (Fig. 1), with Exposed formerly at the disused Hannoversche Port- the over most of the it that lacking ; appears land Cementfabrik AG (HPCF II) quarry, east of ventral surface is exposed, with the length and width sheet 3625 Misburg, topographical map TK 25, of 26 It the venter being about equal, c. mm. might Lehrte, co-ordinates R - 3559120, H - 5806320,

a female with an ovoid telson, 13.7 mm represent situated in the Kronsberg syncline east ofHannover, 10.7 wide, mm long. Chelipeds are equal and ro- were marls and limestones of Early Cenomanian bust, with propodus and fixed fingers at least 27 (dixoni Zone) to the basal conica/papillosa Zone and the of the hand mm long, proximal portion of with hiatus Early Campanian age, a major com- and lower surfaces show granules missing. Upper the Middle Turonian to the prising upper upper-

or very small and the fixed of the spines, finger most Coniacian (Ernst et ah, 1997; see also Wood left claw has that increase in size domed denticles & Ernst, 1998).

The merus of ?third is 23.9 proximally. pereiopod The black shale succession across the Cenoma-

5 wide 3.7 wide mm long, mm proximally, mm nian-Turonianboundary has been the subject of de-

merus of fourth to tailed studies distally; pereiopod equal third, (for a review see Hilbrecht & Dahmer, 5 with 10.8 dactylus lanceolate. Pereiopod merus 1994). Black shales intercalate with white limestones

mm long, c. 4 mm wide; carpus, propodus, dacty- (the so-called ‘Schwarz-weisse Wechselfolge’) and

lus flabelliform. 7.5 mm 5.5 mm wide; be subdivided into Carpus long, may a lower member (Upper

12.5 8.0 propodus mm long, mm wide; dactylus Cenomanian), a middle or ‘major’ member (Lower

5.2 mm 2.9 mm wide. long, Turonian) and an upper member (upper Lower Tu-

Downloaded from Brill.com09/23/2021 06:45:51PM via free access 162 C. J. — Newman & W.M. Jagt Carcineretid from the Cretaceous near Hamburg

Downloaded from Brill.com09/23/2021 06:45:51PM via free access Contributions to Zoology, 72 (2-3) - 2003 163

ronian), in which black shale beds become thinner. a carcineretid affinity ofthe HPC II crab; possibly,

The laminated marls contain 1-3% the main interest of this find lies in the fact that it only up to to

Corg, which means they are not ‘black shales’ sensu has paddle-shaped posterior legs, suggesting it to stricto, and contain mainly inoceramid bivalves and have been able to swim over short distances. More ammonites, including Neocardioceras juddii, Tho- and better preserved material is needed to make a melites abundant as well as definite sp. and Sciponoceras, more assignment possible. well-preserved fish remains (Kriwet & Gloy, 1995).

Ernst al. referred this find from et (1997, p. 81) to Acknowledgements one of the several black shale levels in the ‘Major

Black Shale belt’ of the Lower Turanian (see their We thank Carola Radke (Museum fur Naturkunde, Berlin) for fig. 56), interpreted as a basin facies. preparation of photographs, and R.M. Feldmann (Kent State

University, Kent, Ohio) and J.S.H. Collins (London)for sharing

their views on the specimen with us.

Results

features Although there are hardly any carapace References

would have find left that allowed us to place this with 5 more detail, carapace outline, pereiopod with Ernst G, Niebuhr B, Rehfeld U. 1997. HPCF II at Misburg.

In: Mutterlose J, Wippich MGE & Geisen M. Cre- a flabelliform dactylus and cheliped size and struc- (eds). taceous depositional environments of NW Germany. Bo- ture would seem to favor assignment to the Car- chumer geol. u. geotechn. Arb. 46: 77-82. cineretidae. A lot has happened to members of this Feldmann RM, Villamil T. 2002. A new carcineretid crab

in recent and more is to family years, undoubtedly (Upper Turanian, Cretaceous) of Colombia. Jour. Paleo. defined come. Feldmann & Villamil (2002, p. 720) 76: 718-724.

Hilbrecht H, Dahmer D. 1994. Sediment the Carcineretidae as follows: ‘Carapace quadran- dynamics during the Cenomanian-Turonian (Cretaceous) oceanic anoxic gular, wider than long, bearing one or more promi- event in northwestern Germany. Facies 30: 63-84. nent transverse ridges; fronto-orbital margin nearly Kriwet J, Gloy U. 1995. Zwei mesopelagische Raubflsche equal to maximum carapace width; mar- posterior (Actinopterygii: Euteleostei) aus dem Unterturon der Krons- 4 gin narrow; propodi and dactyli of pereiopods or berg-Mulde bei Hannover/Misburg (NW Deutschland).

5 Those Berliner Abh. E16; 335-356. flattened into paddle-like structures’. au- geowiss.

Wood Ernst G. 1998. Cenomanian-Turonian Wunstorf. thors the CJ, of accepted as true carcineretids only gen- In: Mutterlose J, Bornemann A, Rauer S, Spaeth C & era Carcineretes, Branchiocarcinus, Mascaranada, Wood CJ (eds). Key localities of the northwest European Ophthalmoplax and Woodbinax, and reassigned Cretaceous. Bochumer geol. u. geotechn. Arb. 48: 62-73. others ((Cancrixantho, Lithophylax, Longusorbis,

Icriocarcinus, Withersella and Binkhorstia). With Received: 14 March 2003 so few diagnostic features left we can only hint at

I. indeterminate Portland Cement Specifically ?carcineretid; Hannoversche II, Misburg (Hannover area, Germany), Lower Turanian (black shale facies) A, uncoated, B, whitened with ammonium chloride sublimate prior to photography. Scale bar in mm.

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