Loveniidae

Lovenia elongata, copyright Ria Tan.

Belongs within: Micrasterina.

The Loveniidae are a group of heart urchins known from the Eocene to the present, most of which are distinguished from other urchins by the presence of an internal fasciole around the apical system. The Indo-Pacific genus Homolampas lacks an internal fasciole but resembles other loveniids in having having noncrenulate primary tubercles sunk in camellae (Fischer 1966).

Characters (from Fischer 1966): Internal fasciole usually present, surrounding apical system and parts of anterior ambulacrum (absent in Homolampas). Subanal fasciole generally present, peripetalous fasciole slso present in Breynia and Homolampas; apical system ethmolytic, with three or four gonopores; paired ambulacra petaloid, with anterior pair commonly fused into transverse crescent; anterior ambulacrum apetaloid. Primary spines sometimes recessed in camellae. Plastron ultramphisternous.

<==Loveniidae F66
    |--Chuniola Gagel 1903 F66
    |    `--*C. carolinae Gagel 1903 F66
    |--Homolampas Agassiz 1874 [=Lissonotus Agassiz 1869 nec Gistl 1848 nec Blyth 1853] F66
    |    `--*H. fragilis (Agassiz 1869) [=*Lissonotus fragilis] F66
    |--Pseudolovenia Agassiz & Clark 1907 F66
    |    `--*P. hirsuta Agassiz & Clark 1907 F66
    |--Verbeekia Fritsch 1877 [=Verbeckia Pomel 1883] F66
    |    `--*V. dubia Fritsch 1877 [=*Verbeckia dubia] F66
    |--Echinocardium Gray 1825 B01 [=Amphidetus Agassiz 1836 F66]
    |    |--*E. cordatum (Pennant 1777) [=Echinus cordatus, *Amphidetus cordatus] F66
    |    |--E. australe P61
    |    |--E. flavescens [incl. Amphidetus ovatus] BK77
    |    |--E. mediterraneum PP64
    |    |--E. mortenseni PP64
    |    `--E. pennatifidum BK77
    `--Lovenia Desor 1847 B01
         |  i. s.: L. carinata (Cotteau 1889) SG93
         |         L. forbesi [incl. Hemipatagus woodsii Etheridge 1875, L. forbesi var. woodsi] F71
         |         L. gregalis Alcock 1893 MG-H11
         |         L. gregoryi (Clark 1915) SG93
         |         L. lorioli (Lambert 1902) SG93
         |         L. suessi Bittner 1880 SG93
         |--*L. (Lovenia) elongata (Gray 1845) [=Spatangus elongatus] F66
         `--L. (Vasconaster Lambert 1915 [=Sarsella Pomel 1883 non Haeckel 1879] F66
              `--L. (*V.) sulcatus (Haime 1853) [=Breynia sulcata, *Sarsella sulcata] F66

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[BK77] Barel, C. D. N., & P. G. N. Kramers. 1977. A survey of the echinoderm associates of the north-east Atlantic area. Zoologische Verhandelingen 156: 1–159.

[B01] Boczarowski, A. 2001. Isolated sclerites of Devonian non-pelmatozoan echinoderms. Palaeontologia Polonica 59: 1–219.

[F66] Fischer, A. G. 1966. Spatangoids. In: Moore, R. C. (ed.) Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology pt U. Echinodermata 3 vol. 2 pp. U543–U628. The Geological Society of America, Inc., and The University of Kansas Press.

[F71] Fletcher, H. O. 1971. Catalogue of type specimens of fossils in the Australian Museum, Sydney. Australian Museum Memoir 13: 1–167.

[MG-H11] McEnnulty, F. R., K. L. Gowlett-Holmes, A. Williams, F. Althaus, J. Fromont, G. C. B. Poore, T. D. O’Hara, L. Marsh, P. Kott, S. Slack-Smith, P. Alderslade & M. V. Kitahara. 2011. The deepwater megabenthic invertebrates on the western continental margin of Australia (100–1100 m depths): composition, distribution and novelty. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 80: 1–191.

[PP64] Peres, J. M., & J. Picard. 1964. Nouveau manuel de bionomie benthique de la mer Mediterranee. Recueil des Travaux de la Station Marine d'Endoume, Bulletin 31 (27): 5–137.

[P61] Powell, A. W. B. 1961. Shells of New Zealand: An illustrated handbook 4^th ed. Whitcombe and Tombs Limited: Christchurch.

[SG93] Simms, M. J., A. S. Gale, P. Gilliland, E. P. F. Rose & G. D. Sevastopulo. 1993. Echinodermata. In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Fossil Record 2 pp. 491–528. Chapman & Hall: London.

Last updated: 9 August 2021.