Permian Productacea Brachiopod Fossils from Western Australia's Three Major Basins

Over 3,000 well-preserved specimens represent at least 34 species of the brachiopod super-family Productacea from the Permian period. The collection covers three major sedimentary basins in Western Australia—the Canning, Carnarvon, and Irwin Basins—spanning an area of approximately 150,000 square miles. Study of this material enabled analysis of shell structure, musculature, and living position features whose functions are imperfectly understood.

Use Cases

• Taxonomic classification and phylogenetic analysis based on the described species counts across seven genera.
• Paleoecological reconstruction of Permian marine environments based on the distribution across three major sedimentary basins.
• Morphological study of brachiopod shell features like structure, attachment scars, and trails mentioned in the description.
• Biostratigraphic correlation and dating of Permian glacial and marine sedimentary sequences.
• Comparative analysis of Indo-Pacific brachiopod faunas, leveraging the representation of the genus Taeniothaerus.

Strengths

• Large collection of over 3,000 specimens, most described as well preserved.
• Comprehensive taxonomic coverage with at least 34 species across multiple genera detailed in the description.
• Clear geographic scope covering three major Permian basins in Western Australia, an area of approximately 150,000 square miles.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for specific analytical tasks.
• Data formats are limited to HTML and PDF, which may require extraction for computational analysis.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network

Collection Method

Study of a physical fossil collection; methodology suggests taxonomic and morphological analysis.

Time Range

Permian period (geological era).

Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-23 05:20:33.808451; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Western Australia, specifically the Canning, Carnarvon, and Irwin Basins.