Late Ordovician Palynomorphs

Abstract. ACRITARCHS

Ordovician acritarchs have been recorded in five core samples collected between 2520 ft. and 3000 ft. in Well E1-81, and ten cutting samples taken between 12150 ft. and 13240 ft. in Well J1-81A. All the assemblages recovered are of Late Ordovician age; no Early Ordovician or Middle Ordovician assemblages have been identified.

Investigations have so far concentrated on the acritarch assemblages from Well El-81. The highest three Ordovician samples from depths of 2520 to 2550 ft., 2552 to 2557 ft., and 2562 to 2567 ft., yielded similar assemblages which include Veryhachium irroratum, V. cf. lairdii, V. oklahomense?, V. subglobosum, V. trispinosum, Villosacapsula setosapellicula and a new species, Striatotheca sp. A. Navifusa similis? is represented by one specimen in the sample from 2552 to 2557 ft. Another specimen from the same sample is tentatively referred to Aremoricanium syringosagis. Specimens of Baltisphaeridium, Peteinosphaeridium, Leiofusa and Eupoikilofusa occur throughout the interval 2520 to 2567 ft. but are rare. Commonly occurring species include V. irroratum and V. setosapellicula. V. irroratum has been recorded from the Middle Ordovician of North America (Loeblich & Tappan, 1969) and the Caradoc of England (Turner, 1984) but Cramer & Diez (1979) maintain that it has its acme in the Ashgill. V. setosapellicula is common in the Sylvan Shale of Oklahoma (Loeblich, 1970) which is generally understood to be of Ashgill age, but is rare in the Eden Shale (Caradoc) of Indiana (Colbath, 1979) and in the type section of the Caradoc Series in Shropshire, England (Turner, 1984). . . .