One of the oldest polychelidan lobsters from Upper Triassic (Carnian) beds at Kozja dnina in the Julian Alps, Slovenia
Résumé
Upper Triassic limestones at Kozja dnina in the Julian Alps have long been known to yield an exceptionally preserved Carnian fauna. In the present study, we discuss three specimens of polychelidan lobsters found on bedding planes of platy limestones during recent years. Polychelidan lobsters have a very patchy fossil record and every new specimen increases the palaeobiodiversity of the group. Eopolycheles cornuaureus gen. nov., sp. nov. constitutes one of the oldest species of the family Polychelidae to date. Its affinities to the Polychelidae, the only family of polychelidan lobsters that survived to the present day, suggest an earlier diversification of polychelidan lobsters during their evolutionary history than previously assumed.