Meeting Abstract

P3-149   -   A new method of morphometric analysis for extant and extinct notostracans Bogan, BA*; Hegna, TA; SUNY Fredonia, Fredonia; SUNY Fredonia, Fredonia brookeabogan@gmail.com

Classification of fossil notostracans is difficult due to the scarcity of complete specimens. The carapace is often all that remains and the carapace can vary with ontogeny, and meristic characters are few. In order to identify and classify as many individuals as possible, we must understand shape and the patterns of shape change in notostracans: both extinct and extant. We have used the program Momocs in R to create a morphospace of notostracan carapaces using the shapes of both modern and fossil notostracans. This approach has brought to light two significant findings: a) there is fluctuating asymmetry in fossil notostracans and b) the shape difference between a live animal and an exuvium is potentially enough to explain the difference between some fossil species.