A NEW GENUS OF HALYSITES FROM ROSENDALE/KINGSTON AREA, NEW YORK

At the 2017 National Meeting of the Geologic Society of America a Poster was presented titled “A new species of Cystihalysites from Rosendale/Kingston Area, New York” by the above authors. The two photos titled “Specimens from Kingston”, shown here, were exhibited The left photo is a longitudional view of a specimen exhibiting globose (cystic) diaphragms (dissepiments) in the mesocorallites. This is one of the major characteristic of the genus Cystihalysites (Treatise, 1981, Section F, page 629) and the only other two genera of Halysites that exhibit globose diaphragms have characteristics that distinguish them from Cystihalysites (Schodohalysites and ?Spumacolites). The right photo is a transverse view of two autocorallities showing strongly developed septal spinnules (12 ?). Strong septal spinnules and 12 longitudinal rows are two major characteristic of the genus Acanthohalysites. No other Halysites genera show these characteristic.

Because the specimens collected in Kingston, New York are distinguishable by major genera characteristics from all other genera listed in the Treatise we feel that they should be listed as a new genus which we propose it be named Acanthocystihalysites.

Also, because these specimens have been not been identified at other locations by the authors or other researchers working on Halysites except the Glasco Member of the 2nd Transition of the Rondout Formation (Harper 1969, p. 5) this transition may be unique to the Kingston/Rosendale area and that the specimens that we collected in the Cobleskill in Salt Springville’ New York and that were collected in the Wilbur Member of the Rondout Formation which do not show strong septal spinnules should be retained in the genera Cystihalysites and is identical to Cystihalysites brownsportensis suggests that the Brownsport of West Tennessee, the Cobleskill of upstate New York and the Wilbur of Kingston, New York are related. Work is now in progress to confirm this hypothesis.