Fell, H.B. 1954 Tertiary and Recent Echinoidea of New Zealand : Cidaridae. Wellington: New Zealand Geological Survey. New Zealand Geological Survey paleontological bulletin 23 62 p.
Abstract: The Cidaridae are a group of globe-shaped sea-urchins, remarkable alike for their ancient lineage and for their exceptional symmetry and beauty. The group arose in the Late Paleozoic, and reached a peak of development in northern seas during Jurassic and Cretaceous times. In New Zealand and Australia they continued to flourish unabated, and, though very little is known about Mesozoic forms, Tertiary representatives have been found in Australasia of not fewer than one-third of all known Cenozoic genera of the world. New Zealand's Cidarid faunas were at their richest during mid-Tertiary times, when there existed magnificent species, in size and aspect recalling the largest known tropical and sub-tropical forms of the Recent Indo-Pacific. With the onset of the cooler Pliocene, however, the New Zealand Cidarids (and other echinoids) dwindled, and cool-water echinoids of a different aspect took their place. At the present time only two Recent species of Cidarids are known to inhabit New Zealand off-shore waters. The Recent fauna of New Zealand has lost its former resemblance to that of Australia. In the present account of New Zealand Tertiary and Recent Cidarids an attempt is made to meet two requirements. Firstly, to provide an adequately illustrated systematic account of the material, together with a discussion of the relationships of the faunas, their origins, and their migration routes. Secondly, to furnish the field paleontologist with a ready means of recognizing, and therefore using, the fossils which he encounters. (auth/EB)
