Not Heritschioides in Europe Yet by Edward C. Wils<strong>on</strong> The col<strong>on</strong>ial rugose coral Heritschioides Yabe, 1950 is an index fossil for uppermost Pennsylvanian and Lower Permian marine rocks <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> western USA plus western and Arctic Canada (Wils<strong>on</strong>, 1980 and later reports by several authors). Kossovaja (1996, 1997) referred to a Late Carb<strong>on</strong>iferous coral from North Timan (NE European Arctic Russia) as Heritschioides aff. H. carneyi Wils<strong>on</strong>, 1982, but did not describe or figure it. H. carneyi originally was described from <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Upper Pennsylvanian-Lower Permian McCloud Limest<strong>on</strong>e <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> nor<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>rn California. This apparent interc<strong>on</strong>tinental geographic range extensi<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> genus may not be justified. I have corresp<strong>on</strong>ded with Kossovaja (1995) and reviewed photographs <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> her thin secti<strong>on</strong>s <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> North Timan coral. The corallites are poorly preserved and somewhat crushed and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> short cardinal septum, an obligatory character for <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Family Heritschioidae Sando, 1985, is not observable. The coral, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>refore, cannot be firmly referred to Heritschioides. Fur<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>rmore, Kossovaja’s coral is so unlike H. carneyi in numbers <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> septa and lengths <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> minor septa that it cannot be placed in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> same species group (Wils<strong>on</strong>, 1982, fig. 17) even if it did bel<strong>on</strong>g to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> genus. Firm identificati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> North Timan coral awaits examinati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> better preserved specimens. Until <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>n, this range extensi<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> such an important index coral genus should be regarded with cauti<strong>on</strong>. References Kossovaja, 0. L., 1996. Correlati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> uppermost Carb<strong>on</strong>iferous and Lower Permian rugose coral z<strong>on</strong>es from <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Urals to western North America. Palaios 11(l), 71-82. Kossosvaja, 0. L., 1997. Correlati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> uppermost Carb<strong>on</strong>iferous and Lower Permian rugose coral z<strong>on</strong>es from <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Urals to western North America (abstract). Fossil Cnidaria & Porifera 25(2), 37. Sando, W. J., 1985. Paraheritschioides, a new rugose coral genus from <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Upper Pennsylvanian <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Idaho. Journal <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Pale<strong>on</strong>tology 59, 979-985. Wils<strong>on</strong>, E. C., 1980. Redescripti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> type specimens <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Permian rugose coral Waagenophyllum columbicum Smith, 1935, type species <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Heritschioides Yabe, 1950. Journal <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Pale<strong>on</strong>tology 54, 85-92. Wils<strong>on</strong>, E. C., 1982. Wolfcampian rugose and tabulate corals (Coelenterata: Anthozoa) from <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Lower Permian McCloud Limest<strong>on</strong>e <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> nor<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>rn California. C<strong>on</strong>tributi<strong>on</strong>s in Science 337, 1-90. Yabe, H., 1950. Permian corals resembling Waagenophyllum and Corwenia. Japan Academy Proceedings 26, 74-79. E. C. Wils<strong>on</strong> Natural History Museum <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Los Angeles County 900 Expositi<strong>on</strong> Blvd. Los Angeles, Ca. 90007 USA The Permian sequence at Wairaki Downs, Sou<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>rn New Zealand by J. B. Waterhouse The fullest sequence <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Middle Permian bioz<strong>on</strong>es in New Zealand is found at Wairaki Downs, an area <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> low rolling hills east <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Takitimu Mountains, where older Permian rocks are exposed. The mid-1950’s and 1960’s saw initial mapping and descripti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> about 200 species <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> mostly brachiopods and molluscs, and recogniti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> a number <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> bioz<strong>on</strong>es (Mutch 1972, Waterhouse 1964, 1982). Subsequently <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> area has been mapped in more detail, using a base-map at 1:6800. It has been found that although <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> successi<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> z<strong>on</strong>es has been correctly ordered, several are separated by low-angle thrusts, which have brought toge<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>r rocks from different sources. Many <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> thrusts involve Jurassic sediment. The new mapping and careful examinati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> faunas show that claims <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> “broken formati<strong>on</strong>s” by Landis (1 987) and purported revisi<strong>on</strong>s and correlati<strong>on</strong>s in Campbell et al. (1996) may be set aside. The successi<strong>on</strong> may be briefly summarized. Wairaki Downs Group The Wairaki Downs Group overlies <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Early Permian (Cisuralian) Takitimu Group, as part <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> a basaltic andesitic volcanic arc and associated sediment called <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Brook Street Terrane. The group c<strong>on</strong>tains faunas <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> seven successive brachiopod z<strong>on</strong>es in three formati<strong>on</strong>s: Caravan, <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> very coarse clastics, Letham which grades northwards from <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> upper Caravan into deeper water siltst<strong>on</strong>es and carb<strong>on</strong>ates, and Mangarewa which grades southwards from coarse sediment into thicker carb<strong>on</strong>ates and fine clastics. Landis (1987) claimed <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Letham and Mangarewa were inseparable, and c<strong>on</strong>stituted a broken formati<strong>on</strong>, but allowed he had not mapped <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>m. Fossils are numerous and occur in bioz<strong>on</strong>es which may be correlated with <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> bioz<strong>on</strong>es recognized in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> sou<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>ast Bowen Basin <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> central Queensland (Waterhouse 1987). Structural data and fossils suggest that <strong>on</strong>e bioz<strong>on</strong>e has been substantially thinned by a low angle thrust just above <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> base <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Mangarewa Formati<strong>on</strong>. New overviews <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> east Australian ages by Roberts et al. (1996) and Jin and Menning (1996) suggest that <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> bioz<strong>on</strong>es range through Kungurian and Guadalupian, based partly <strong>on</strong> Australian amm<strong>on</strong>oid data, radiometric values and paleomagnetic lllawarra Reversal. Of course <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> correlati<strong>on</strong>s with world stratotypes must be putative and indirect, because no c<strong>on</strong>od<strong>on</strong>ts are present. Glendale Formati<strong>on</strong> The Wairaki Downs Group is overlain unc<strong>on</strong>formably by Jurassic c<strong>on</strong>glomerate <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Elsdun Formati<strong>on</strong>, and separated from clastics and massive limest<strong>on</strong>e <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Glendale Formati<strong>on</strong> by a low angle thrust. The thrust is partly intruded by <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> igneous Weetwood Formati<strong>on</strong>. Newly found fossils bel<strong>on</strong>g to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Plek<strong>on</strong>ella multicostata Z<strong>on</strong>e, <strong>on</strong>e <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> several z<strong>on</strong>es correlated with Late Permian <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Himalaya and Salt Range (Waterhouse 1978). This bioz<strong>on</strong>e is better developed elsewhere in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> New Zealand Permian, and may be poorly represented in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> upper South Curra Limest<strong>on</strong>e <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Gympie Basin <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> sou<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>ast Queensland. It seems likely that <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Glendale developed as part <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> a separate Maitai Terrane, which c<strong>on</strong>verged <strong>on</strong> Brook 15
Figure 1. Permian and Mesozoic geology, much simplified, for Wairaki Downs, sou<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>rn New Zealand. Formati<strong>on</strong>s, with provisi<strong>on</strong>al ages: E - Elsdun (Jurassic), G - Glendale (lower Wuchiapingian), H - Coral Bluff Tect<strong>on</strong>ic Assemblage, with Hilt<strong>on</strong> (late Wuchiapingian) and ?Old Wairaki Hut (late Cisuralian), K - Wairaki Breccia-C<strong>on</strong>glomerate (late Changhsingian), L - Letham (Kungurian), M - Mangarewa (Guadalupian), O - Old Wairaki Hut (late Cisuralian), R - Elbow Creek (early Kungurian), V - Caravan (early Kungurian), W - Weetwood (?Cretaceous). Geographic features - b - Letham Burn, c - Elbow Creek, p - Productus Creek, r - Barreft’s Hut track, w - Wairaki River, 1-3 major east tributaries <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Letham Burn. General area 167degrees 57' east, 45degrees, 47' south - 1:50 000 NZMS 260 Sheet D 44 (1986). Map base prepared from aerial photograph no. 5215 (1978). 16
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