Jump to content

Coelopleurus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 2607:fea8:aa61:b870:3066:2747:44fb:969e (talk) at 11:43, 28 May 2020 (Grammar :)). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Coelopleurus
Temporal range: Eocene–Present
Coelopleurus floridanus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Phylum:
Class:
Subclass:
Order:
Family:
Genus:
Coelopleurus

Coelopleurus is an extant genus of echinoids with fossil records dating back to the Eocene,[1] with remains found in Europe and North America.

Characteristics

Test of a Coelopleurus exquisitus

These abyssal sea urchins are characterized by their surprisingly bright color pattern, usually red and white. Even more surprisingly, their tests (skeletons) are brightly colored, too, even after drying, or sometimes fossilization.[2]

Species

According to World Register of Marine Species:[3]

Fossil species:

  • Coelopleurus elegans (Bell), from the Pleistocene of the Jizo-do formation of Japan[4]

References

  1. ^ Fossils (Smithsonian Handbooks) by David Ward (p. 179)
  2. ^ Mah, Christopher L. "Coelopleurus : The most gorgeous urchin you never heard of!". The Echinoblog..
  3. ^ Coelopleurus on WoRMS.
  4. ^ Coelopleurus elegans (Bell) at museum.tohoku.ac.jp

Further reading