Zhu Maoyan

Early Cambrian protoconodonts and conodont-like fossils from China: Taxonomic revisions and stratigraphic implications

Abstract Protoconodonts and conodont-like microfossils are characteristic components in the early Cambrian skeletal faunas. Sincethe 1970s, these tooth-like phosphatic sclerite fossils have been widely recovered from the Lower Cambrian of China, and altogether 25 genera and 52 species of protoconodonts and conodont-like fossils have been described, although some taxa represent synonyms or invalid taxonomic names, and some assignments are apparently inappropriate. Through a brief review and discussion, the distinction between protoconodonts and conodont-like fossils is denoted here. Thereare 13 genera previously assigned to protoconodonts in the literature, but present taxonomic revisions show that 5 of them are junior synonyms of other taxa, and 2 represent unknown arthropods. The other 12 genera, of which 5 also are junior synonyms, only reveal a conodont-like morphology with various zoological affinities: most of them are enigmatic, and only Beshtashella and Parafomitchella (=Beshtashella) can be assign...