GENERAL GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Perforations (“punctae”) are one of the most characteristic morphological shell features in calcite brachiopods. The significance of punctae is that they represent discontinuities in shell biomineralisation and thus add a level of complexity that must be accounted for in any model of brachiopod shell formation.

Detailed explanation-2: -The shell comprises two valves that are composed of calcite or chitinophosphate (calcium phosphate plus organic matter). The pedicle (or ventral) valve is typically externally convex. The other valve (the brachial or dorsal valve) may be similar but, in some brachiopods, it is extremely concave or more rarely conical.

Detailed explanation-3: -Rhynchonelliform brachiopods have shells made calcium carbonate and interlocking pegs (teeth) and sockets that form a hinge between the valves.

Detailed explanation-4: -Brachiopods (/ˈbrækioʊˌpɒd/), phylum Brachiopoda, are a phylum of trochozoan animals that have hard “valves” (shells) on the upper and lower surfaces, unlike the left and right arrangement in bivalve molluscs.

Detailed explanation-5: -Brachiopods have two shells, called valves, which house the creature inside. Through a hole in one of the valves, known as the pedicle foramen, extends a fleshy ligament called the pedicle.