Permian terebratulids of Eurasia: Morphology,systematics, and phylogeny

The Permian terebratulids of Eurasia are revised. The taxonomic composition of the Permian terebratulids of the Russian Platform, Northern Caucasus, Transcaucasia, northern and southeastern Pamirs, and northern China (Inner Mongolia) is elucidated. Fifty-one species (13 described here as new), 21 genera (3 described here as new), 7 families, and 6 superfamilies are described. During the progress of the study, the author (Smirnova, 2004a, 2004b, 2006a, 2006b) and Smirnova and Grunt (2002, 2003a, 2003b) described for the first time 19 species, nine genera, two families, and one superfamily. Morphofunctional analysis reveals a great diversity of internal structures, of the time of their appearance in the ontogeny, and of their taxonomic significance. Ontogenetic study reveals phylogenetic relationships between the Permian and Meso-Cenozoic terebratulids, the presence of the superfamilies Terebratuloidea and Loboidothyroidea in the Permian, and a new type of brachidium ontogeny characterizing the superfamily Compositelasmatoidea. This book is intended for paleontologists and biologists interested in problems of taxonomy and phylogeny, and includes 5 plates, 80 figures, and 75 bibliographic references.