A new Courceyan (Lower Carboniferous) eumalacostracan crustacean from the Forest of Dean

In 1982 the carapaces of an unknown Carboniferous crustacean were presented to the Natural History Museum. It was originally thought that these may represent a new species of Tealliocaris. Further, better preserved, material has since been collected from the Great Doward in the Forest of Dean which allows a better comparison with other Carboniferous crustaceans. Although there are similarities with other Carboniferous eumalacostracan crustaceans, there are also some significant differences in the shape of the carapace and the ornamentation of the carapace and pleon. The broad, squat telson is more akin to Pseudogalathea, but the length of the pleon and the lack of elongated sharp postero-lateral angles to the carapace is more like that of Tealliocaris. The lack of an enlarged third pleomere is one feature that differentiates it from Tealliocaris, however, PCA on 12 landmarks of the carapace indicate that this new crustacean is quite distinct from both Tealliocaris and Pseudogalathea and represents a new genus and species of Lower Carboniferous eumalacostracan which has been named Schramocaris in honour of the palaeocarcinologist: Prof. Fred R. Schram. Comparisons with other fossil crustaceans from around the world also suggest that this new crustacean is morphologically similar to Chaocaris, Tylocaris, Fujianocaris, Pseudogalathea and Tealliocaris. Similar crustaceans from the Borders of Scotland and New Brunswick, Canada, may also belong to this genus.