Shell injuries in Densepustula Lazarev, 1982, Pennsylvanian productidine brachiopod from the Donets Basin, Ukraine

Abstract

Nine injured ventral valves of productidine brachiopods belonging to the genus Densepus­tu­la Lazarev, 1982, from the Mospyne, Smolyanynivka, Belaya Kalitva, and Kamensk formations (Upper Bash­kirian-lower Moscovian, Lower and Middle Pennsylvanian) of the Donets Basin (eastern Ukraine) were studied. Three morphological types of damage traces have been recognized: Type A) longitudinal, sub­longitudinal, and transversal thin straight or sinuous furrows, about 5-7 mm long and 0.5-1.5 mm thick; Type B) rounded and ellipsoidal pits, about 3-4 mm in diameter, located on the umbo, the an­te­ri­or margin of the ventral valve, and the lateral slopes of the ventral valve; and Type C) irregularly-shaped dimples on the anterior margin and in the sulcus, 2-3 mm in size. These injuries are present on 9 out of 61 (15%) of ventral valves studied, but entirely absent from dorsal valves (0 out of 25). The most likely producers of these damage traces are cartilaginous fishes and parasites of unclear affinity.