Moscovian (Carboniferous)

The Moscovian is in the ICS geologic timescale a stage or age in the Pennsylvanian, the youngest subsystem of the Carboniferous. The Moscovian age lasted from 315.2 to 307 Ma,[1] is preceded by the Bashkirian and is followed by the Kasimovian. The Moscovian overlaps with the European regional Westphalian stage and the North American Atokan and Desmoinesian stages.

Moscovian
315.2 ± 0.2 – 307.0 ± 0.1 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Chronology
Key events in the Carboniferous -360 — – -355 — – -350 — – -345 — – -340 — – -335 — – -330 — – -325 — – -320 — – -315 — – -310 — – -305 — – -300 — – P a l e o z o i c D C a r b o n i f e r o u s P M i s s i s s i p p i a n P e n n s y l v a n i a n L D E a r l y M i d d l e L a t e E a r l y M i d L a t e C S Famennian Tournaisian Viséan Serpuk. Bashkirian Moscovian Kasimovian Gzhelian Asselian       ← Carboniferous Rainforest Collapse ← Mazon Creek Fossils ← End of Romer's Gap ← Start of Romer's Gap Key events of the Carboniferous Period Axis scale: millions of years ago
Etymology
Name formality	Formal
Usage information
Celestial body	Earth
Regional usage	Global (ICS)
Time scale(s) used	ICS Time Scale
Definition
Chronological unit	Age
Stratigraphic unit	Stage
Time span formality	Formal
Lower boundary definition	Not formally defined
Lower boundary definition candidates	FAD of the Conodont Idiognathoides postsulcatus or Declinognathodus donetzianus
Lower boundary GSSP candidate section(s)	Southern Ural mountains Nashui, Luodian County, Guizhou, China
Upper boundary definition	Not formally defined
Upper boundary definition candidates	FAD of the Fusulinid Protriticites or 1 million years older Montiparus montiparus
Upper boundary GSSP candidate section(s)	Southern Ural mountains Southwest USA Nashui, Luodian County, Guizhou, China

Name and definition

The Moscovian stage was introduced by Sergei Nikitin (1850 - 1909) in 1890, using brachiopods in the Moscow Basin of European Russia. Nikitin named the stage after Moscow, then a major city and now the capital of Russia.

The base of the Moscovian is close to the first appearances of the conodonts Declinognathodus donetzianus and Idiognathoides postsulcatus[2] or otherwise the fusulinid Aljutovella aljutovica.[3] Because the fusulinid species are regionally different, they can not be used for worldwide correlation. A Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point for the Moscovian stage has yet to be defined (2008). A proposal is to use the first appearance of the conodont Diplognathodus ellesmerensis, but since the species is rare and its evolution relatively unknown, it has not been accepted yet.[4]

The top of the Moscovian (base of the Kasimovian) is at the base of the fusulinid biozone of Obsoletes obsoletes and Protriticites pseudomontiparus, or with the first appearance of the ammonite genus Parashumardites.

Subdivisions

In European Russia and Eastern Europe, where the stage was first recognized, the Moscovian is subdivided into four regional substages: Vereiskian, Kashirskian, Podolskian, and Myachkovskian, named after towns near Moscow (Vereya, Kashira, Podolsk, and Myachkovo).

The Moscovian can biostratigraphically be divided into five conodont biozones:

• Neognathodus roundyi and Streptognathodus cancellosus Zone
• Neognathodus medexultimus and Streptognathodus concinnus Zone
• Streptognathodus dissectus Zone
• Neognathodus uralicus Zone
• Declinognathodus donetzianus Zone

Moscovian life

Arthropods

Arthropoda of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Arthropleura		Scotland and northeastern North America (Illinois)	A 2 m (79 in) long millipede	Arthropleura
Latzelia		Illinois, United States	A millipede

Jawless fishes

Agnatha of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Pipiscius	Pennsylvanian	United States, Illinois	A basal vertebrate.	Pipiscius

Cartilaginous fishes

Chondrichthyes of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Cobelodus	Pennsylvanian	Illinois, Indiana, United States	A symmoriid holocephalian	Cobelodus Edestus Orodus Orthacanthus Stethacanthus Symmorium Xenacanthus
Edestus	Carboniferous to Cisuralian	Iowa, Indiana, United States; Russia	A eugeneodontid holocephalian
Eugeneodus	Carboniferous	Indiana, United States	A eugeneodontid holocephalian
Janassa	Carboniferous to Lopingian	Ohio, Illinois, United States	a petalodontiform holocephalian
Ornithoprion	Pennsylvanian	Indiana, United States	A eugeneodontid holocephalian
Orodus	Devonian to Pennsylvanian	Indiana, United States	An orodontid holocephalian
Orthacanthus	Carboniferous to Cisuralian	England, Czech Republic	A xenacanthidan elasmobranch
Stethacanthus	Pennsylvanian	Indiana, United States	A symmoriid holocephalian
Symmorium	Pennsylvanian	Illinois, United States	A symmoriid holocephalian
Xenacanthus	Carboniferous to Cisuralian	Czech Republic, Germany, United Kingdom	A xenacanthidan elasmobranch

Tetrapodomorphs

Tetrapodomorphs of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Colosteus	Desmoinesian	Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	A genus of basal amphibians in the family Colosteidae.	Colosteus Megalocephalus
Megalocephalus M. lineolatus	Desmoinesian	Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	A genus of basal amphibians in the family Baphetidae.

†Temnospondyls

Temnospondyls of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Adamanterpeton		Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	Adamanterpeton is a genus of edopoid temnospondyl within the family Cochleosauridae.	Capetus Cochleosaurus Isodectes
Capetus		Czech Republic	A genus of basal temnospondyl. It reached a length of 150 cm.
Cochleosaurus		Czech Republic; Nova Scotia, Canada	A genus of edopoid temnospondyl within the family Cochleosauridae.
Dendrerpeton		Nova Scotia, Canada	A basal eutemnospondyl amphibian.
Erpetosaurus		Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	A genus of dvinosaurian amphibian within the family Eobrachyopidae.
Isodectes		Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	A genus of dvinosaurian amphibian within the family Eobrachyopidae.
Macrerpeton		Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	A genus of edopoid temnospondyl within the family Cochleosauridae.
Platyrhinops		Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	A genus of amphibamiform amphibian.
Stegops		Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	A genus of euskelian amphibian.

†Lepospondyls

Lepospondyls of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Pleuroptyx		Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	Pleuroptyx is an extinct genus of lysorophian lepospondyls within the family Cocytinidae.	Sauropleura
Sauropleura Sauropleura scalaris		Nyrany, Czech Republic	Sauropleura is an extinct genus of nectridean lepospondyls within the family Urocordylidae.

Reptiliomorphs

Reptiliomorphs of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Anthracosaurus		Great Britain; Ohio, USA	A genus of giant eel-like embolomere amphibian, that could reach up to 3 meters in length.	Anthracosaurus russeli Diplovertebron Gephyrostegus Solenodonsaurus
Diplovertebron		Czech Republic	A genus of eogyrinid embolomere. Diplovertebron was around 50 cm in length.
Eogyrinus		England	An eogyrinid embolomere.
Eusauropleura		Ohio, USA	A genus of gephyrostegid reptiliomorph amphibian, similar in appearance to Gephyrostegus.
Gephyrostegus		Nyran, Czech Republic	A genus of gephyrostegid reptiliomorph amphibian. A small animal, 22 cm in length, of generally lizard-like build and presumably habit. It had large eyes and a large number of small, pointed teeth, indicating it was an active insectivorous hunter.
Leptophractus		Upper Freeport Coal Member, Allegheny Formation, Linton, Ohio	A genus of eogyrinid embolomere amphibian.
Solenodonsaurus		Czech Republic	Traditionally classified as a close relative of amniotes a later study found that it was more closely related to the amphibian group Lepospondyli. It measured around 45 cm long.

Parareptilia

Parareptiles of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Carbonodraco	late Pennsylvanian	Ohio, USA	A genus of acleistorhinid procolophonomorph and the oldest parareptile known.

Eureptilia

Eureptiles of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Cephalerpeton	middle Pennsylvanian	Illinois, USA	A genus of "protorothyridid" eureptile, one of the oldest ones.
Paleothyris	Pennsylvanian	Nova Scotia, Canada	Paleothyris was a small, agile, basal anapsid romeriidan reptile with labyrinthodont-like traits.

Synapsids

Synapsids of the Moscovian
Taxa	Presence	Location	Description	Images
Archaeothyris	Pennsylvanian	Nova Scotia, Canada	An ophiacodontid	Archaeothyris Echinerpeton
Clepsydrops	Pennsylvanian	Illinois, United States	An ophiacodontid
Dendromaia	Pennsylvanian	Nova Scotia, Canada	A varanopid
Echinerpeton		Nova Scotia, Canada	A basal synapsid.

References

1. Gradstein, F.M.; Ogg, J.G. & Smith, A.G.; 2004: A Geologic Time Scale 2004, Cambridge University Press
2. • Nemyrovska, T.I.; 1999: Bashkirian conodonts of the Donets Basin, Ukraine. Scr. Geol. 119, pp 1–115 (in Russian).
3. • Solovieva, M.N.; 1986: Zonal fusulinid scale of the Moscovian Stage based on a revision of the type sections of intrastage subdivisions, Vopr. Mikropaleontol
4. Archived 2011-07-07 at the Wayback Machine a report by the taskforce to establish a Bashkirian-Moscovian boundary (Groves et al. (2008))

External links

• Carboniferous timescale at the website of the Norwegian network of offshore records of geology and stratigraphy
• Moscovian, Geowhen Database