Diplochaetetes longitubus explained

Diplochaetetes longitubus is an extinct species of cirratulid polychaete within the genus Diplochaetetes known from Namibian sedimentary rocks dating back to the Eocene.^[1] It was initially described as a tabulate coral, but research carried out on present-day Dodecaceria aggregates and Diplochaetetes mexicanus fossils from the pacific coasts of the Americas has led researchers to classify the entire genus as cirratulid polychaetes.^{[2] [3] [4]} For many decades, they've also been erroneously attributed to sponges.^[5]

A subspecies named Diplochaetetes longitubus vermicularis was also later described from Eocene Namibian sediments.^[6]

Although present-day Dodecaceria and fossil Diplochaetetes aggregates from Peru have been confirmed to show identical double-phased biomineralization characteristics,^[7] no detailed analysis has been performed on their Namibian counterparts so it's unclear whether the trait is shared on a broad genus basis.

Notes and References

1. Uber tertiäre Versteinerungen von den Bogenfelser Diamantfeldern II. Tabulaten und Hydrozoen. Beiträge zur geologischen Erforschung der deutschen Schutzgebiete. 1913. 84–111. 5. Weissermel W.
2. Discussion of the colonial tube-building polychaetous annelid Dodecaceria fistulicola Ehlers. Bulletin of the Southern California Academy of Sciences. 1952. 103-107. 51. 10.3160/0038-3872-51.3.103. Reish DJ.
3. Skeletal structure, growth, and paleoecology of the patch reef-buildingpolychaete worm Diplochaetetes mexicanus wilson, 1986 from the oligocene of baja california (Mexico). Geobios. 1989. 761–775. 22. 10.1016/S0016-6995(89)80071-3. Fischer R, Galli Oliver C, Reitner J. 6 . 1989Geobi..22..761F .
4. Organomineralization of cirratulid annelid tubes-fossil and recent examples. Facies. 2000. 35–49. 42. 10.1007/BF02562565. Fischer R, Pernet B, Reitner, J. 1 . 2000Faci...42...35F . 128949856 .
5. The first tertiary sclerosponge from the Americas. Palaeontology. 1986. 577-583. 29(3). Wilson EC.
6. Neues uber Tabulaten, Hydrozoen und eine Hexakoralle aus dem Tertiar der Bogenfelser Diamantenfelder. Die Diamantenwuste Sudwest-Afrikas. (ed Kaiser, H.). 1926. 88-106. 2. Weissermel W.
7. Double-phased controlled and influenced biomineralization in marine invertebrates: The example of Miocene to recent reef-building polychaete cirratulids from southern Peru. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 2024. 112060. 639. 10.1016/j.palaeo.2024.112060. Guido A, D'Amico F, DeVries TJ, Kočí T, Collareta A, Bosio G, Sanfilippo R. 2024PPP...63912060G . 267306998 .