Mr Etheridge on Fossils from Bowen River Coalfield. 313 



and its accompanying shale as a whole, the first fact which 

 strikes us is the co-occurrence of two such typically distinc- 

 tive fossils as Atrijpct reticulans and Orthotetes crenistria. If 

 we take either of these fossils alone, we are not assisted in 

 any very great degree. A. reticularis ranges from the Upper 

 Silurian to Devonian, although it may be taken to be es- 

 sentially a representative Upper Silurian species. Similarly 

 Orthotetes crenistria ranges from Upper Devonian to the 

 Uppermost Carboniferous, but, like the former species, it has 

 its accumulative horizon, the Carboniferous Limestone. Had 

 we met with either of these species alone, their stratigraphical 

 indication of Upper Silurian or Carboniferous Limestone, as 

 the case may be, would not have been so strong, but in com- 

 pany their strictly individual bearing becomes lost, and we 

 have to accept their combined testimony, which certainly 

 indicates a Devonian age for the beds in question. 



Spirifera curvata appears to be a Middle Devonian fossil ; 

 so does Atrypa desqnamata and Rhyn. primipilaris. On the 

 other hand, Orthotetes crenistria is an Upper Devonian and 

 passage form, whilst Atrypa reticidaris is a Lower and 

 Middle Devonian species. On the whole, the Middle 

 Devonian appears to put in a strong claim, but, pending 

 further researches into this subject, I shall content myself by 

 simply calling the beds in question Devonian. 



Mr T. Davidson, F.E.S., was kind enough to examine the 

 above fossils, and expressed the following opinion on them : 

 " The small lot of specimens you forward for me to look at 

 are, as you say, all Devonian, and can, with a little research, 

 be identified, I think, with known species."* Any addi- 

 tional evidence bearing on the Devonian beds of Queensland 

 is of great interest to me. The presence of rocks of this age 

 was first shown in the colony in question by my father, who 

 refers to this period the Star Eiver and Gympie Series,i- and 

 has described a copious fauna. J 



This determination has, however, been objected to by 

 several authors. For instance. Professor M'Coy believes that 

 there is " no reason for considering the Gympie beds Devonian, 



* Letter dated ''Brighton," February 13, 1879. 



t Quart. Jour. Geol. Soc, xxviii., p. 325. X Loc. cit, pp. 326-333. 



VOL. v. X 



