Devonian stromatoporoid historical collections in the Natural History Museum, London (UK): redescription, taxonomic revision and implications for stromatoporoid global paleobiogeography

Abstract Devonian stromatoporoid collections have been added to the Natural History Museum, London (UK) for over 100 years. The characteristics and systematic position of these specimens, however, have received little attention. In this study, 297 Devonian stromatoporoid specimens comprising material documented by H. A. Nicholson from the UK, Germany, United States, and Canada, plus specimens described by E. A. Ripper from Australia, were re-examined. Overall, 50 species belonging to 29 genera were systematically redescribed based on recent progress, mainly including Actinostroma , Petridiostroma , Stictostroma , Pseudotrupetostroma , and Parallelopora. Three-dimensional reconstructions reveal stromatoporoid architectural patterns, crucial for enhancing understanding and revision of stromatoporoid identification. This study underscores the significance of three-dimensional reconstruction in taxonomic research on stromatoporoids. The NHMUK material is combined with data from publications and the Paleobiology Database (PBDB) to perform a network analysis of the global occurrence of Devonian stromatoporoids at the generic level; this reveals a close relationship of the global stromatoporoid fauna during the Early Devonian, indicating a widespread distribution, despite this interval being regarded as a time of global stromatoporoid contraction. The Middle Devonian assemblage shows a much higher cosmopolitan occurrence in the context of the subsequent Eifelian–Givetian global stromatoporoid proliferation, consistent with the known pattern from other studies of Middle Devonian stromatoporoids. Overall, the NHMUK collections are a valuable resource to help understand the global occurrence of Devonian stromatoporoids.