Maretia is a genus of heart urchins belonging to the family Spatangidae.[1][2]

Maretia
Temporal range: Eocene - Recent
Maretia planulata
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Echinodermata
Class: Echinoidea
Order: Spatangoida
Family: Maretiidae
Genus: Maretia
Gray, 1855

Species

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Description

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These sea urchins are irregular, as the mouth is located at the front of the underside of the animal, while the anus is located in rear end position.[4]

 
Fossil of Maretia pavesi from Miocene of Italy

Fossil record

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Fossils of Maretia are found in marine strata from the Eocene until the Quaternary (age range: from 40.4 to 0.012 million years ago.). Fossils are known from some localities in United Kingdom, United States, Germany, Spain, Cuba, Indonesia, New Zealand, and Eritrea and Greece.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Catalogue of life
  2. ^ Ubio
  3. ^ Kroh, A.; Mooi, R. (2021). "Maretia". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 23 September 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ Moore, R.C. (ed.). 1966-1978. Treatise on invertebrate paleontology. Parts S-U. Echinodermata. 2 Volumes. Geological Society of America and Univer-sity of Kansas, Kansas.
  5. ^ Paleobiologhy Database
  • Rowe, F.W.E & Gates, J. (1995). Echinodermata. In ‘Zoological Catalogue of Australia’. 33 (Ed A. Wells.) pp xiii + 510 (CSIRO Australia, Melbourne.)
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