13. SILICEOUS SPONGE SPICULES, SILICOFLAGELLATES, AND EBRIDIANS FROM HOLE 918D, CONTINENTAL RISE OF THE GREENLAND MARGIN¹

L. Kirk Lurvey,^2,3 Kevin McCartney,² and Wuchang Wei⁴

ABSTRACT

Sediments recovered from Hole 918D on the continental rise of the Greenland Margin were found to contain siliceous sponge spicules, silicoflagellates, and ebridians. An extreme fossil-barren interval occurred in lower Miocene and upper Miocene sediments of the core, with sponge spicules occurring in the middle Miocene. Though generally rare, the sponge spicules were morphologically diverse, with monaxons being the most abundant. Other morphologies and an undescribed spicule type were found. Representatives of several silicoflagellate genera were found in a narrow horizon of the upper Pliocene. The silicoflagellates were of a variety of ages, showing that this layer has been reworked. This interval also included two large ebridians, Triskelion gorgon and Adonnadonna primadonna, that have not been previously described from the North Atlantic.

¹Saunders, A.D., Larsen, H.C., and Wise, S.W., Jr. (Eds.), 1998. Proc. ODP, Sci. Results,152: College Station, TX (Ocean Drilling Program).
²Micropaleontology Undergraduate Research Laboratory, University of Maine at Presque Isle, Presque Isle, ME 04769, U.S.A. Correspondence author: McCartney@polaris.umpi.maine.edu
³Department of Geology, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, U.S.A.
⁴Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0215, U.S.A.