What coral is this

[Brian James Maguire]

This was found in the Carboniferous limestone of the Malahide formation , east coast Dublin Ireland, 

[TqB]

A very strange one, if it is actually a coral. I suppose it could be a fragment showing septa but it looks more like something shelly which would have to be a cephalopod...

[Rockwood]

Assuming the barnacles are modern, I think this is more likely to be a brachiopod. 

[TqB]

4 minutes ago, Rockwood said:

Assuming the barnacles are modern, I think this is more likely to be a brachiopod. 

I'm not seeing barnacles? There are protruding bits of Syringopora or Aulopora on the right.

[Rockwood]

18 minutes ago, TqB said:

I'm not seeing barnacles? There are protruding bits of Syringopora or Aulopora on the right.

They are to the lower left. On the item in question. Aulopora was my thought for the others. I wasn't sure enough to mention it though.

[Fossildude19]

Cropped and contrasted:

 

[Brian James Maguire]

I have done a little more research and i am confident enough to say its zaphrentis rugose coral @TqB @Rockwood @Fossildude19

[Brian James Maguire]

@Rockwood there are no barnacles present, that on the lower left is more coral

[Rockwood]

56 minutes ago, Brian James Maguire said:

@Rockwood there are no barnacles present, that on the lower left is more coral

The barnacles are on the lower side of whatever the larger fossil is. I still don't think it's rugose coral. I doubt the shape in the lowest left is identifiable. 

[Brian James Maguire]

43 minutes ago, Rockwood said:

The barnacles are on the lower side of whatever the larger fossil is. I still don't think it's rugose coral. I doubt the shape in the lowest left is identifiable. 

Im not seeing any barnacles

[Brian James Maguire]

[Brian James Maguire]

Zaphrentis densa is a species of rugose coral that thrived during the Carboniferous period. This coral is known for its distinctive morphology, which typically includes a more robust and sturdy structure compared to other coral types. Its growth pattern often features prominent septa (the internal walls within the coral), which can help identify the species in fossil records.

Fossils of Zaphrentis densa have been discovered in various locations, including Ireland, where they are often found in Lower Carboniferous limestone formations, particularly in the Malahide formation near Dublin  . These corals were part of the ancient marine ecosystems, contributing to the biodiversity of their time.

[TqB]

18 minutes ago, Brian James Maguire said:

Zaphrentis densa is a species of rugose coral that thrived during the Carboniferous period. This coral is known for its distinctive morphology, which typically includes a more robust and sturdy structure compared to other coral types. Its growth pattern often features prominent septa (the internal walls within the coral), which can help identify the species in fossil records.

Fossils of Zaphrentis densa have been discovered in various locations, including Ireland, where they are often found in Lower Carboniferous limestone formations, particularly in the Malahide formation near Dublin  . These corals were part of the ancient marine ecosystems, contributing to the biodiversity of their time.

I can see it as a zaphrentoid with the new photos and video, or perhaps caniniid if those are horizontal tabulae at the bottom.

Zaphrentis is an old catchall genus that is now correctly Zaphrenthis and confined to the Devonian (according to the Treatise).

Edited Sunday at 06:09 PM by TqB

[Rockwood]

40 minutes ago, Brian James Maguire said:

Im not seeing any barnacles

I've spent many hours beach combing in Maine. These have to be barnacles. 

[Mark Kmiecik]

Barnacles. I also see two more that I missed.

 

Edited Sunday at 06:38 PM by Mark Kmiecik
added info

[Brian James Maguire]

45 minutes ago, Rockwood said:

I've spent many hours beach combing in Maine. These have to be barnacles. 

Ahhh these little guys yes sorry i thought you were talking about the much bigger patches to the left of these

[FossilDAWG]

A quite different suggestion, have you considered a highly curved breviconic nautiloid?  At any rate, in corals the septa are attached to the outside of the coralline and project towards the center.  The partitions that form the floor below the living animal are called tabulae.  The curved partitions in your specimen cannot be coral septa but they could be tabulae.  However tabulae are usually more irregular and variable in spacing.  To me, the curved structures look like nautiloid septa.
 

Don

[anonaddict]

7 minutes ago, FossilDAWG said:

A quite different suggestion, have you considered a highly curved breviconic nautiloid?  At any rate, in corals the septa are attached to the outside of the coralline and project towards the center.  The partitions that form the floor below the living animal are called tabulae.  The curved partitions in your specimen cannot be coral septa but they could be tabulae.  However tabulae are usually more irregular and variable in spacing.  To me, the curved structures look like nautiloid septa.
 

Don

disagree with nautiloid, the septa would be too close together 

[TqB]

11 hours ago, FossilDAWG said:

A quite different suggestion, have you considered a highly curved breviconic nautiloid?  At any rate, in corals the septa are attached to the outside of the coralline and project towards the center.  The partitions that form the floor below the living animal are called tabulae.  The curved partitions in your specimen cannot be coral septa but they could be tabulae.  However tabulae are usually more irregular and variable in spacing.  To me, the curved structures look like nautiloid septa.
 

Don

They can be septa if you're looking at coral with the epithecal surface worn through, as in this one, compared with a still of the video (a lower Carboniferous Aulophyllum): (I did think they might be septa at first though!)

Edited Monday at 07:06 AM by TqB

[FossilDAWG]

Thanks @TqB.  I can see how that might fit now.

 

Don