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Spiniferites fragilis

Spiniferites fragilis He Chengquan, 1991

Holotype: He Chengquan, 1991, pl.23, fig.12
Age: Paleocene

Description from He Chengquan, 1991, translated by Suning Hou, 07-01-2019
Description: The body is nearly circular, upper and lower cysts nearly equal, no apical and antapical horns, there is a clear crack vertical to the cingulum. Two types of processes with different sizes: Larger ones length 20 μm, width 4μm, hollow, basally larger, distally expanded, with short picker-shaped branches or trumpet shape ends; Smaller ones length 10-22 μm, conical or bar-shaped, the end trumpet shaped, processes brittle, distally mostly broken. The processes are located at the gonal positions and are clearly centered on the apex, antapex and cingulum, their bases mostly connected by low ridges, the tabulation defined by the ridges is incomplete and partially ridged may be absent. Cingulum equatorial position, narrow, width 5μm, nearly ring, the edge is marked by the smooth fine ridge as the boundary. No sign of sulcus. Wall thickness about 1μm, two layers thickness are nearly equal, the outer wall surface (including processes) is smooth. Archeopyle outline horseshoe shape, precingular, P-type,indicated by the main archeopyle crack on the third precingular plate. Operculum preserved in situ. Body length 65μm, width 70μm.
Comparison: The species was similar to Achomosphaera crassipellis in cyst and processes shape, but the latter wall showed a fibrous structure with reticular surface.
Loction and stratigraphy: Wuqia County, Basebulak; Qimugen fm and the lower member of the Wulagen fm.
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