Ernietta from the late Edicaran Nama Group, Namibia

Ernietta plateauensis Pflug, 1966 is the type species of the Erniettomorpha, an extinct clade of Ediacaran life. It was likely a gregarious, partially infaunal organism. Despite its ecological and taxonomic significance, there has not been an in-depth systematic description in the literature since t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of paleontology 2016-11, Vol.90 (6), p.1017-1026
Main Authors: Elliott, David A, Trusler, Peter W, Narbonne, Guy M, Vickers-Rich, Patricia, Morton, Nicole, Hall, Mike, Hoffmann, Karl H, Schneider, Gabi I.C
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Ernietta
Fossils
Nama
Sandstone
Water column
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Summary:Ernietta plateauensis Pflug, 1966 is the type species of the Erniettomorpha, an extinct clade of Ediacaran life. It was likely a gregarious, partially infaunal organism. Despite its ecological and taxonomic significance, there has not been an in-depth systematic description in the literature since the original description fell out of use. A newly discovered field site on Farm Aar in southern Namibia has yielded dozens of specimens buried in original life position. Mudstone and sandstone features associated with the fossils indicate that organisms were buried while still exposed to the water column rather than deposited in a flow event. Ernietta plateauensis was a sac-shaped erniettomorph with a body wall constructed from a double layer of tubes. It possessed an equatorial seam lying perpendicular to the tubes. The body is asymmetrical on either side of this seam. The tubes change direction along the body length and appear to be constricted together in the dorsal part of the organism.
ISSN:0022-3360
1937-2337
DOI:10.1017/jpa.2016.94