THE JELLYFISH OF SOLNHOFEN AND THEIR IMPOSTORS

Solnhofen, the Jurassic-age Lagerstatte located in Germany, is one of the few sites of special preservation that has provided fossils of scyphozoan and hydrozoan medusa. Since the early 1800s, a modest number of jellyfish taxa have been described from the area and are housed in museums and private collections. In addition to the authentic body fossils there are a number of imperfectly known circular markings that may or may not represent jellyfish. In this study we present data on the verified genera of jellyfish found at Solnhofen and examine a variety of fossils that may represent diagenetic or trace fossil affinity.