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Professor Emeritus John Taylor published a new study on the taxonomy and stratigraphic distribution of the Cambrian agnostoid arthropod Lotagnostus and associated trilobites and conodonts with IUP alumni James D. Loch ’83 and John E. Repetski ’69. The publication provides critical new information on Upper Cambrian (Furongian) deep marine fossil assemblages from northern Laurentia.

The study describes two distinct Lotagnostus-dominated faunas from the Windfall Formation in Nevada, introduces several new species, and reassesses the biostratigraphic utility of these fossils in global correlation efforts. By integrating macrofossil and microfossil range data with sedimentary facies analysis, the study revealed imprecision in correlation between deeper and shallower water deposits that is highly problematic for intercontinental correlation. One of the new species of trilobite was named after IUP emeritus professor Joseph C. Clark. 

This publication is a significant advancement in paleontology, addressing longstanding questions about Lotagnostus taxonomy and its role in biostratigraphy.

The full article is available in Zootaxa.

Microscope images of trilobite fossil parts.
Three new agnostoid arthropod species named in honor of former colleagues. The head and tail on the left are those of Lotagnostus clarki (named for IUP emeritus professor Joe Clark). The ones in the middle are those of Lotagnostus nolani (named for former director of the US Geological Survey Thomas Nolan, who did a bunch of excellent work on the rocks in Nevada). The ones on the right are head and tail of Lotagnostus rushtoni (named for fellow trilobite specialist Adrian Rushton of the British Geological Survey).