Izvestiya of Saratov University.
ISSN 1819-7663 (Print)
ISSN 2542-1921 (Online)


reproduction

Demonstration of Gemmation among Cretaceous Skeletal Sponges – Hexactinellida

The examination of the modular organization in fossil skeletal sponges (Hexactinellida) is mainly related to a study of their vegetative reproduction. The concepts of the reproductive forms for both Recent and Mesozoic hexactinellids can be ambiguous. Examples of the skeletons of fossil sponges from the Late Cretaceous of the Volga River basin, with morphologically detached and naturally distributed sprouts interpreted as buds, are shown.