Article: New Permian crinoids from Australia

Thirteen taxa of Permian crinoids are reported from Australia. These crinoids increase our knowledge of the cooler water Australian late Palaeozoic faunas, are dominantly sand substrate dwellers, and provide new fossils which support earlier correlations of recognized Permian strata in eastern and Western Australia. The early Permian age of several Australian species, which are also found in Timor, supports earlier views that the previously assigned late Permian age of the Timor crinoid-bearing Basleo Beds of the Maubisse Formation may be incorrect. Taxonomic reassignment of families previously placed in the Lophocrinacea are: the Pachylocrinidae to the Texacrinacea, based on the similarities of the radial facets and arms branching patterns; the Stellarocrinidae to the Texacrinacea, based on dorsal cup similarities; and the Laudonocrinidae to the Pirasocrinacea, based on dorsal cup and arm morphology. Taxonomic reassignment of four genera previously placed in the Pelecocrinidae, all based on similarity of morphological characters of the dorsal cup of the genus and the family, are: transfer of Forthocrinus to the Stellarocrinidae; Tetrabrachiocrinus to the Laudonocrinidae; and Malaiocrinus and Depaocrinus to the Pachylocrinidae. Inadunates recognized for the first time in Western Australia are Eoindocrinus praecontignatus and Tapinocrinus spinosus. New taxa described are the camerates Dichocrinus! gerringgongensis sp. nov., Neocamptocrinus occidentalis sp. nov., and Stomiocrinus ferruginus sp. nov., and the inadunates Occiducrinus australis gen. et. sp. nov., Anechocrinus nalbiaensis gen. et sp. nov., Skaiocrinus granulosus gen. et sp. nov., and Jimbacrinus minilyaensis sp. nov.