Lower Devonian (Pragian-Emsian) stromatoporoids from Victoria

The Lower Devonian (Pragian-Emsian) stromatoporoid faunas of Victoria are de¬ scribed. The diverse assemblages include much ofthe material used in the original descrip¬ tions of Elizabeth Ripper in the 1930s supplemented by new collections from the most fossiliferoussuccessions. Altogether 37 speciesrepresent 23 genera ofstromatoporoids. New species are the clathrodictyids Atelodictyon hicksense and Clathrodictyon? heathsense, the stromatoporcllid Amnestostroma holmesae, the stromatoporids Parallelopora ampla, Habrostroma tyersense and Columnostroma clathratum, and the amphiporid Stellopora porrecta. Plectostroma, Petridiostroma, Stictostroma, Tubuliporella, Syringostromella, Coenostrorna and Columnostroma are recorded from Australia for the first time. The microstructures of the best preserved specimens are also described and illustrated. The assemblages represent three biostratigraphically distinct assemblages: (i) the lower-mid Pragian (sulcatusto kindlei conodont biozones) association ofthe Lilydale Limestone at Lilydale and the Coopers Creek Limestone near Tyers, which include key elements such as Plectostroma ahum, Aculatostromal sp., Schistodictyonl cylindriferum, Pseudoactinodictyon sp., Atelodictyon chapmani, Stromatoporella cf. granulata, Tubuliporella calamosa, Amnestostroma holmesae, Salairella lilydalensis, Syringostromella zintchenkovi, Habrostroma tyersense, Columnostroma clathratum and DendrostromaP sp.; (ii) the basal Emsian (dehiscens conodont Biozone) association in the Buchan Caves Limestone of the Buchan district with restricted elements such as Clathrodictyonl heathsense, Pseudotrupetostroma buchanense (and possibly P. ripperae), Syringostromella cf. labyrinthea, Coenostrorna sp. and Atopostroma distans; and (iii) the lower-mid Emsian (perbonus con¬ odont Biozone) association ofthe upper Murrindal Limestone ofthe Buchan area with key elements such as Petridiostroma delicatulum, Pseudotrupetostroma sp., Parallelopora ampla and Atopostroma sp. The biostratigraphically well-constrained Pragian-lower Emsian assemblages of Vic¬ toria exhibit many genera, such as Pseudoactinodictyon, Stromatoporella, Stictostroma, Tubuliporella, Parallelopora, Pseudotrupetostroma and Coenostrorna, which are more characteristic of Middle rather than Lower Devonian successions in many parts of Asia, Europe and North America. These occurrences indicate that all these forms have significant Lower Devonian records, at least locally. A brief review of the significant features of the Australian Devonian stromatoporoid faunal record is presented, as well as an outline ofthe global Lower Devonian succession of stromatoporoid faunas.