Glaessner, M.F. 1960 The fossil decapod Crustacea of New Zealand and the evolution of the order Decapoda. Wellington: New Zealand Geological Survey. New Zealand Geological Survey paleontological bulletin 31 63 p.
Abstract: In the first part of this work 30 species of fossil decapod Crustacea from New Zealand are recognised. 22 of these are named, 16 are new, and one is placed in a new genus. Four species are from the Mesozoic, the others are from the Cainozoic deposits, from which only one species had been described previously. Most of the species are Brachyura. Although only few representatives of the many decapod Crustacea that must have existed in the past are known, they indicate the presence of ancestors of some living species among the Late Oligocene to Miocene assemblages. Some species of this age are common to Australia and New Zealand. Earlier Tertiary faunas are similar to those known from other areas but not to the well known Tethyan warm-water faunas. The Late Tertiary assemblages gradually approach the composition of the living fauna. The second part outlines the foundations for the classification and morphological terminology used in the descriptive part. The evolution and morphological significance of the carapace, and particularly the carapace furrows on which the classification of the fossil decapod Crustacea largely depends, are discussed, and the reduction of the abdomen in various phyletic lines is reviewed. The evolution of the Brachyura is outlined on the basis of paleontological evidence. The resulting classification of the decapod Crustacea is listed, mostly to family level, with stratigraphic ranges. (auth)
