Diagnoza

Whole P₁ element transformed into elaborate peniculus built of bifurcating lateral processes radiating from the center of element.

Porównanie

This is a commonly occurring species with bizarre elements. This species was reported  from the K. crepida Zone of the Frankenwald, from coeval strata at Jabłonna in the Holy Cross Mountains. At first glance it does not resemble a conodont at all. When seen from the base  it shows bifurcation of lateral processes that resulted in developing so unusual pattern of the peniculus. Also the basally pointed outline in lateral view is consistent with the characterictic appearance of P₁ elements of Mehlina. A peniculus developed widely in other members of the Mehlina-Polynodosus branch, as well as in the possibly related Frasnian Ancyrodella  and the difference between them and M. lunaria is actually not great. An almost complete gradation can be assembled. The relatively stable morphology of P₁ elements of M. lunaria sp. n. (shown by both mine and earlier published specimens) and the morphologic gap between its morphology and variability expressed by other known peniculi indicates that this is a separate species.

Autekologia

Występowanie geograficzne

Kadzielnia.

Zasięg czasowy

The K. crepida Zone. 

Materiały muzealne

ZPAL: 2 specimens.

Literatura

Dzik, J. 2006. The Famennian "Golden Age" of conodonts and ammonoids in the Polish part of the Variscan sea. Palaeontologia Polonica 63, 1-359.