Taxonomic status of the belemnite genusBelemnopsis Bayle 1878

Upper Jurassic (Tithonian) belemnites from the Neuquén Basin, Argentina

“…The apical line is slightly ventral situated, and no lateral lines were observed. (Bayle, 1878) groups more than one hundred European and Indo-Pacific belemnite species ranging from the Middle Jurassic up to the Lower Cretaceous (Riegraf, 1999). Although we agree with Riegraf (1980), Howlett (1989), andIppolitov et al (2015) that such a broad taxonomic concept is problematic, there is still no agreement among belemnite workers on the validity of the proposed subgeneric categories (e.g., Challinor, 1991;Challinor and Hikuroa, 2007) and the poor preservation state of our material does not enable further insight on the matter, so we follow the classic taxonomic assignation to the genus Belemnopsis.…”

Synonymy and stratigraphic ranges ofBelemnopsisinthe Heterian and Ohauan Stages (Callovian‐Tithonian), southwest Auckland, New Zealand

“…A are now considered identical (see taxonomy below) and hereafter are discussed as Belemnopsis stevensi. Riegraf (1999) considered the generic name Belemnopsis to be invalid, and should be replaced by Pachybelemnopsis Riegraf, 1980. Riegraf's forensic arguments may be valid but I would argue that to follow his conclusions, some 110-125 taxa discussed in c. 90 publications (Riegraf 1999) would be renamed, and this would introduce great confusion where none exists at present.…”