Saturday 17 April 2021

DORSOPLANITES: FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

Golden light shines on the ammonite, Dorsoplanites dorsoplanus (Vischniakoff, 1882), Upper Jurassic, Volgian Stage, Panderi Zone. If you wanted to visit this beauty today, she is in the collections of the deeply awesome Emil Black. 

If you wanted to travel to the outcrop where she was found, you would want to head to eastern Europe then search through the rock dumps along the new subway in the city of Moscow along the Moskva River in Central Russia.

Eight biohorizons, four of which were previously distinguished in Central Poland and four new ones have been identified as — contradictionis, pommerania, kuteki, and pilicensis, — were identified in the Dorsoplanites panderi zone of the Upper Jurassic Middle Volgian Substage of the European part of Russia on the basis of the succession of ammonites of the Zaraiskites genus. If that sounds like Greek to you, no worries. Just know that they are actively being studied and those geeking out on the finds are happy as clams.

The peculiarities of variations of the ammonite complexes in space and time testify to the stepwise warming during the Panderi Chron and the occurrence of the significant latitudinal temperature gradient in the Middle Russian Sea. Collection & photo of the awesome Emil Black.