Impact of the Silurian Ireviken Event on polychaete faunas: new insights from the Viki drill core, western Estonia

Abstract

The impact of the Llandovery–Wenlock Ireviken Event (IE) on the jawed polychaete faunas is explored in this study, based on new data on scolecodonts from the Viki drill core of western Estonia. A distinct faunal reorganisation is observed, with the most abrupt changes recorded between datum points 4 and 6 of the IE, which coincides with the major turnover interval of other fossil groups. Based on what is now known, polychaetaspids and mochtyellids suffered most severely during the event, whereas the members of other families seem to have been less affected.

Keywords::

• Ireviken Event
• Silurian
• scolecodonts
• polychaetes
• Estonia

Acknowledgements

Reviewers Hubert Szaniawski and Jiří Frýda are thanked for their helpful suggestions that improved the manuscript. The research was supported by the Estonian Research Council (projects MJD407, ETF9039, SF0140020s08), the Czech Science Foundation (project P210/12/2018) and the Swedish Research Council. The study is a contribution to the IGCP Project 591.