Late Ordovician cephalopods from Morocco and their implications

Abstract The present paper describes the latest cephalopod fauna from the Upper Ordovician in the Anti-Atlas region, Morocco. Two species are reported herein belonging to two genera including one new species, Tafadnatoceras elfechtense sp. nov. and Isorthoceras sp.; the latter of which marks the fir...

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Main Authors: Xiang Fang, Björn Kröger, Kun Liang, Qing Chen, Jiaqi Song, Lan Jiang, Yaoyan He, Chenggang Wang, Xiongwei Zeng, Hao Liu, Kai Wei, Fafu Wu, Wenkun Qie
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SpringerOpen 2025-07-01
Series:Swiss Journal of Palaeontology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s13358-025-00374-5
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author Xiang Fang
Björn Kröger
Kun Liang
Qing Chen
Jiaqi Song
Lan Jiang
Yaoyan He
Chenggang Wang
Xiongwei Zeng
Hao Liu
Kai Wei
Fafu Wu
Wenkun Qie
author_facet Xiang Fang
Björn Kröger
Kun Liang
Qing Chen
Jiaqi Song
Lan Jiang
Yaoyan He
Chenggang Wang
Xiongwei Zeng
Hao Liu
Kai Wei
Fafu Wu
Wenkun Qie
author_sort Xiang Fang
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The present paper describes the latest cephalopod fauna from the Upper Ordovician in the Anti-Atlas region, Morocco. Two species are reported herein belonging to two genera including one new species, Tafadnatoceras elfechtense sp. nov. and Isorthoceras sp.; the latter of which marks the first occurrence of the genus in Morocco. The discovery extends the distribution of late Katian cephalopod faunas globally, correlative with other high-latitude cephalopod faunas such as those from the Zagros region of Iran. After the evolutionary peak of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event in the Middle to early Late Ordovician, a marine ecosystem crisis led to a decline in biodiversity afterwards. Although the cephalopods continued to flourish in low-latitude regions, the palaeogeographic differentiation was observed in the Anti-Atlas region, where the faunas in the high-latitude region experienced a significant decline. The pattern aligns with the changes in the latitudinal diversity gradient from the Middle to Late Ordovician. Furthermore, the distributions of the cephalopod faunas in the Late Ordovician may have been influenced by the emergence of the high-latitude cold current.
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institution Kabale University
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series Swiss Journal of Palaeontology
spelling doaj-art-ac7b4e230ce947769f1d091e8832c7322025-08-20T04:03:01ZengSpringerOpenSwiss Journal of Palaeontology1664-23761664-23842025-07-01144111110.1186/s13358-025-00374-5Late Ordovician cephalopods from Morocco and their implicationsXiang Fang0Björn Kröger1Kun Liang2Qing Chen3Jiaqi Song4Lan Jiang5Yaoyan He6Chenggang Wang7Xiongwei Zeng8Hao Liu9Kai Wei10Fafu Wu11Wenkun Qie12State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of SciencesFinnish Museum of Natural History, University of HelsinkiState Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of SciencesState Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of SciencesState Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of SciencesState Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of SciencesWuhan Center, China Geological SurveyWuhan Center, China Geological SurveyWuhan Center, China Geological SurveyWuhan Center, China Geological SurveyWuhan Center, China Geological SurveyWuhan Center, China Geological SurveyState Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of SciencesAbstract The present paper describes the latest cephalopod fauna from the Upper Ordovician in the Anti-Atlas region, Morocco. Two species are reported herein belonging to two genera including one new species, Tafadnatoceras elfechtense sp. nov. and Isorthoceras sp.; the latter of which marks the first occurrence of the genus in Morocco. The discovery extends the distribution of late Katian cephalopod faunas globally, correlative with other high-latitude cephalopod faunas such as those from the Zagros region of Iran. After the evolutionary peak of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event in the Middle to early Late Ordovician, a marine ecosystem crisis led to a decline in biodiversity afterwards. Although the cephalopods continued to flourish in low-latitude regions, the palaeogeographic differentiation was observed in the Anti-Atlas region, where the faunas in the high-latitude region experienced a significant decline. The pattern aligns with the changes in the latitudinal diversity gradient from the Middle to Late Ordovician. Furthermore, the distributions of the cephalopod faunas in the Late Ordovician may have been influenced by the emergence of the high-latitude cold current.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13358-025-00374-5Upper Tiouririne FormationKatianAnti-AtlasPalaeogeographyHigh-latitude cold current
spellingShingle Xiang Fang
Björn Kröger
Kun Liang
Qing Chen
Jiaqi Song
Lan Jiang
Yaoyan He
Chenggang Wang
Xiongwei Zeng
Hao Liu
Kai Wei
Fafu Wu
Wenkun Qie
Late Ordovician cephalopods from Morocco and their implications
Swiss Journal of Palaeontology
Upper Tiouririne Formation
Katian
Anti-Atlas
Palaeogeography
High-latitude cold current
title Late Ordovician cephalopods from Morocco and their implications
title_full Late Ordovician cephalopods from Morocco and their implications
title_fullStr Late Ordovician cephalopods from Morocco and their implications
title_full_unstemmed Late Ordovician cephalopods from Morocco and their implications
title_short Late Ordovician cephalopods from Morocco and their implications
title_sort late ordovician cephalopods from morocco and their implications
topic Upper Tiouririne Formation
Katian
Anti-Atlas
Palaeogeography
High-latitude cold current
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s13358-025-00374-5
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