The Cretaceous corals of Mexico: occurrences and history of research

An extensive, detailed compilation of the known occurrences and described species of Cretaceous scleractinian corals in the country of Mexico, based almost entirely on published scientific literature, is presented for the first time. Cretaceous corals have been reported from more than 170 localitie...

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Main Author: Harry F. Filkorn
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México 2018-06-01
Series:Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Geológicas
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Online Access:https://rmcg.unam.mx/index.php/rmcg/article/view/955
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author Harry F. Filkorn
author_facet Harry F. Filkorn
author_sort Harry F. Filkorn
collection DOAJ
description An extensive, detailed compilation of the known occurrences and described species of Cretaceous scleractinian corals in the country of Mexico, based almost entirely on published scientific literature, is presented for the first time. Cretaceous corals have been reported from more than 170 localities in more than 200 published studies dating from at least as early as 1839. Unfortunately, relatively few of these 200 publications actually described coral species: the entire research history on Mexican Cretaceous coral systematic paleontology is contained in only 16 studies. A total of 116 coral species have been described from these occurrences, inclusive of unnamed coral species and with previously suggested synonymies taken into consideration. Overall the coral occurrences span nearly the entire Cretaceous Period, from the Berriasian through the Maastrichtian, but at least 60 percent of them are from the Early Cretaceous. Furthermore, the vast majority (about 90 percent) of the total number of Mexican Cretaceous coral species are known from the Early Cretaceous. Based on these data, it seems likely that many of the Cretaceous corals of Mexico are still unknown. The detailed review of the literature on Mexican Cretaceous corals presented in this study establishes a modern foundation for future investigations of the paleobiogeography and systematic paleontology of the members of this significant group of reef-building organisms.
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spelling doaj-art-1265aa4e5f864f84a2aa4392552729692025-08-20T03:20:29ZengUniversidad Nacional Autónoma de MéxicoRevista Mexicana de Ciencias Geológicas1026-87742007-29022018-06-01201The Cretaceous corals of Mexico: occurrences and history of researchHarry F. Filkorn0Department of Invertebrate Paleontology, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, 900 Exposition Boulevard, Los Angeles, California USA 90007. An extensive, detailed compilation of the known occurrences and described species of Cretaceous scleractinian corals in the country of Mexico, based almost entirely on published scientific literature, is presented for the first time. Cretaceous corals have been reported from more than 170 localities in more than 200 published studies dating from at least as early as 1839. Unfortunately, relatively few of these 200 publications actually described coral species: the entire research history on Mexican Cretaceous coral systematic paleontology is contained in only 16 studies. A total of 116 coral species have been described from these occurrences, inclusive of unnamed coral species and with previously suggested synonymies taken into consideration. Overall the coral occurrences span nearly the entire Cretaceous Period, from the Berriasian through the Maastrichtian, but at least 60 percent of them are from the Early Cretaceous. Furthermore, the vast majority (about 90 percent) of the total number of Mexican Cretaceous coral species are known from the Early Cretaceous. Based on these data, it seems likely that many of the Cretaceous corals of Mexico are still unknown. The detailed review of the literature on Mexican Cretaceous corals presented in this study establishes a modern foundation for future investigations of the paleobiogeography and systematic paleontology of the members of this significant group of reef-building organisms. https://rmcg.unam.mx/index.php/rmcg/article/view/955corals, Cretaceous, Mexico, research history.
spellingShingle Harry F. Filkorn
The Cretaceous corals of Mexico: occurrences and history of research
Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Geológicas
corals, Cretaceous, Mexico, research history.
title The Cretaceous corals of Mexico: occurrences and history of research
title_full The Cretaceous corals of Mexico: occurrences and history of research
title_fullStr The Cretaceous corals of Mexico: occurrences and history of research
title_full_unstemmed The Cretaceous corals of Mexico: occurrences and history of research
title_short The Cretaceous corals of Mexico: occurrences and history of research
title_sort cretaceous corals of mexico occurrences and history of research
topic corals, Cretaceous, Mexico, research history.
url https://rmcg.unam.mx/index.php/rmcg/article/view/955
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