Inoceramid larval planktotrophy: evidence from the Gault Formation (Middle and basal Upper Albian), Folkestone, Kent

39 4 Mon, 01/01/1996 - 12:00 December 1027 1036

KNIGHT, R. I., MORRIS, N. J. 1996. Inoceramid larval planktotrophy: evidence from the Gault Formation (Middle and basal Upper Albian), Folkestone, Kent. Palaeontology, 39, 4, 1027–1036.

R. I. Knight and N. J. Morris It has long been postulated that inoceramid bivalves had a long-lived planktotrophic larval stage because of their cosmopolitan distribution in the Cretaceous. This is now proven by the discovery of large larval shells preserved on inoceramid adult umbones from the Gault Formation at Folkestone. The developmental structure of these larval shells indicates that they were planktotrophic, living in the water column for in excess of 50 days. However, neither the inoceramid larval shell shape nor the hinge structure throw any new light on the taxonomic affinities of this extinct bivalve family. The Palaeontological Association (Free Access)