The Sponge Fauna of the Eocene Castle Hayne Limestone From East-Central North Carolina

Abstract

The Eocene Castle Hayne Limestone has yielded one of the most varied and best preserved sponge faunas known from Tertiary rocks of North America, from outcrops near the community of Mt. Olive in east-central North Carolina. Demosponges include: Ophiraphidites infundibuliformis Schrammen, 1899: the new species Ophiraphidites hadros; and the new genus and species Acrochordiella vokesi. Hexactinellid sponges include the new lyssacinosid euplectelloid species, Regadrella trabecula, and the new dictyid Haynespongia vokesae. Fragments of root tufts and lychniscosid sponges also occur. This is the first report of lychniscosid sponges in North American Tertiary rocks.