''Eocypridina'' is an extinct genus of ostracods which lived from the

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya. It is named after Devon, England, whe ...

to early Triassic periods in the United States and Scotland. It was first named in 1960, with ''E. campbelli'' as its type species.

Discovery and naming

Fossils of ''Eocypridina'' have been described decades before the genus was named. In 1874, a monograph by Jones, Kirkby & Brady was published in which they named the species '' Cypridina radiata'', believing it was most similar to other species of ''Cypridina''. The type series of ''C. radiata'' was collected from the "Upper Coal-measures" of the Airdrie Blackbank Ironstone in Glasgow, Scotland by John Young. The genus ''Eocypridina'' was erected in 1960 by Kesling and Ploch, with ''E. campbelli'' as its type species. They collected several specimens from sediments of the

Blackiston Formation The Blackiston Formation is a geologic formation in Indiana. It preserves fossils dating back to the Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Sil ...

on the north bank of the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

in Indiana, and deposited them in the

University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', whic ...

. The

carapace A carapace is a Dorsum (biology), dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tor ...

of a female (UMMP 40548) was chosen as the holotype of this species, while several other specimens were designated as paratypes. The generic name combines a Greek ἠώς, (''eos''), "dawn", with the name ''Cypridina'', referring to how it is an early relative of the extant genus. The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

honors Guy Campbell, who collected the studied specimens. In 1973, Martin J. M. Bless established a new genus of ostracods which he named ''Radiicypridina''. He justified the naming of this genus based on the presence of rosettes with needle-shaped radii in the calcareous layer and the complex pattern of muscle scars. However, I. G. Sohn pointed out in his 1977 publication that the rosettes are not an anatomical feature and thus is not a valid feature for genus recognition. In addition, the muscle scars were not significantly different from those of ''Eocypridina'', so ''Radiicypridina'' was declared a

junior synonym The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linna ...

of it.

References

External links

* Myodocopida Ostracod genera {{Paleo-crustacean-stub