Ordovician (Darriwilian-Katian) lingulate brachiopods from central New South Wales, Australia

This paper completes the systematic description of all known lingulate brachiopods from the Ordovician Macquarie Volcanic Province in central New South Wales, including a new genus and species, Psygrnakantha malachiensis and the new species Acrosaccus scutatus, Apatoboltts anoskelidion, Atansoria australis, Biernatia pseudoplana, Biernatia wrighti, Eoconulus puteus, Nushbiella kleithria and Scaphelasma quadratum. The oldest lingulates documented are from latest Middle Ordovician (Darriwilian) to early Upper Ordovician (Sandbian) limestones within the Fairbridge Volcanics, which yield Acrosaccus, Biernatia, Elliptoglossa, Ephippelasma and Nushbiella. Late Ordovician (Katian) lingulates described from the Fossil Hill Limestone (Benthic Assemblage 1-3) of the Cliefden Caves area include Acrosaccus, Plectoglossa and Pseudolingula?. Slightly younger, outer shelf to upper slope (BA 4-5) high diversity lingulate faunas, comprising most of the new taxa described herein, occur in allochthonous limestone breccias of the Malongulli Formation, in the Downderry Limestone Member of the Ballingoole Limestone, and in limestones redeposited in the Barnby Hills Shale and other Silurian strata. These deeper water faunas are dominated by acrotretoids, including species of Conotreta, Ephippelasma, Hisingerella, Rhysotreta?, Scaphelasma, Spondylotreta and Undiferina. Additional material of species previously described from graptolitic siltstones of the lower Malongulli Formation, including Elhptoglossa adela, Paterula malongulliensis and Hisingerella hetera, are figured by SEM photography for the first time. Biogeographic affinities of the lingulate faunas described here align most strongly with those from Kazakhstan, terranes along the perimeter of Laurentia, New Zealand, and to a lesser extent with South China.