Paleoenvironmental reconstruction of aĀ Jurassic LakeĀ
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I have made this illustration for a scientific paper by Van Damme & Kotov (2016, Earth-Science Reviews) on the fossil record of the Cladocera or waterfleas,Ā a major group of zooplankton and a vital component inĀ aquatic food webs.
Dr. Kay Van Damme provided the concept of the reconstruction, describing the paleoenvironment with its plant and animal species. The illustration shows aĀ hypothetical mid-Mesozoic freshwater lake (Jurassic-Early Cretaceous) with emphasis on the waterfleas.Ā
A ā Cladocera. B ā Phytoplankton. C ā Ephippia of anomopod Cladocera. D ā Paleoenvironment, plants: dead fern leaf, ginkgoales leavesĀ and horsetail remains; freshwater Charales; semi-aquatic horsetails;Ā lycopsids and mosses. Paleoenvironment, animals: 1. Notostraca; 2. āConchostracaā; 3. Damselfly nymph; 4. Aquatic beetle larva; 5. Aquatic Diptera larva (Chaoboridae); 6. Aquatic Hemiptera; 7. Basal teleost fish.Ā
See Van Damme & Kotov (2016) for an extensive description of all represented species.Ā
