A New Ophiuroid Fossil Description from Upper Cretaceous Bathurst Island

Cenomanian (Upper Cretaceous) strata of Bathurst Island, Northern Territory, Australia, contain a newly described ophiuroid fossil. The dataset, published by Geoscience Australia Data, describes the species Ophiomicros bathursti gen. et sp.nov., which may be allied to Ophiura and Amphiura genera. The description distinguishes the new genus by its unusually large oral plates and small adoral plates.

Use Cases

• Taxonomic classification of a new ophiuroid genus and species based on morphological description.
• Comparative morphological analysis based on the described oral and adoral plate structures.
• Paleoecological studies of Cenomanian marine environments in the Northern Territory region.

Strengths

• Describes a formally named new genus and species (Ophiomicros bathursti).
• Provides specific temporal (Cenomanian, Upper Cretaceous) and geographic (Bathurst Island, Northern Territory) context.
• Includes comparative morphological analysis against established genera (Ophiura and Amphiura).

Limitations

• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Data may reflect geographic/temporal bias inherent to the specific fossil locality.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Scientific description and taxonomic analysis of a fossil specimen.

Time Range

Cenomanian (Upper Cretaceous)

Freshness

Last updated 2026-05-06 21:30:02.015265; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Bathurst Island, Northern Territory, Australia