i 4 o SHELVE DISTRICT 



Figured material. 



length width (mm) 

 External and incomplete internal moulds of brachial valve 



(BB 35484a, b) 2-5 3-9 



Internal mould of brachial valve (BB 35485) 2-2 4-1 



External and internal moulds of brachial valve (BB 35486a, b) 1-3 2-6 



External and internal moulds of pedicle valve (BB 35487a, b) 2-2 - 



Horizon and locality. Hagley Shales : interbedded tuff exposed in north end 

 of coppice 300 yds north-east of Calcot, Church Stoke (Grid Ref. SO 275961). 



Discussion. The only Sericoidea found in the Shelve area occur in fine-grained 

 tuffs associated with the Hagley Shales and Volcanics. Specimens are not common 

 but moulds of the brachial valves recovered show that the sample is closely related 

 to S. abdita Williams from the Derfel Limestone of the Arenig area (Williams in 

 Williams & Whittington 1955 : 418 ; Williams 1962 : 188). In the smallest brachial 

 valves up to i-6 mm long the median septum and a peripheral arc of sharp tubercles 

 were strongly developed but the submedial septa only incipiently so. Further growth 

 included an acceleration in the secretion of the submedial septa to amalgamate with 

 the median septum and an accentuation of the arc of tubercles into discrete septules. 

 Both S. abdita from Wales and S. aff. abdita from the Balclatchie Group of Girvan 

 were characterized by the development of a similarly differentiated and proportioned 

 lophophore platform. Indeed the only differences between the Shelve Sericoidea 

 and those from Wales and Scotland is that the ribbing of the former is slightly coarser 

 and the brachial valve relatively longer, although on available evidence these 

 differences are not significant. 



Superfamily STROPHOMENACEA King 1846 



Family STROPHOMENIDAE King 1846 



Subfamily FURCITELLINAE Williams 1965 



FURCITELLA Cooper 1956 



Furcitella sp. 



(PL 25, figs. 4, 5) 



The external and internal moulds of a strophomenid brachial valve (BB 35422a, b), 

 from the Whittery Shales exposed in Whittery Quarry at the south end of Whittery 

 Wood near Chirbury (Grid Ref. SO 275981), have been provisionally identified as 

 Furcitella. The valve which was 7-5 mm long was almost semicircular in outline 

 with slightly obtuse cardinal angles. The valve was also resupinate, being flat up 

 to the 2.5 mm growth stage but thereafter becoming convex to attain an overall 

 depth of 10% of the length. The external surface was ornamented by fine, equally 

 developed costellae numbering 8 per mm, 5 mm antero-medially of the umbo and 

 crossed by fine fila with frequencies of up to 18 per mm. The surface also undulated 

 as impersistent rugae with wavelengths of about 0-5 mm. The internal features are 

 poorly preserved but the cardinalia and muscle boundaries can be identified as 



