Who Was the First Person Known to Have Discovered Fossils of the Precambrian (Ediacaran) Organism Aspidella terranovica

Abstract

This article briefly examines the possible confusion pertaining to the discoveries of Precambrian (Ediacaran) fossils made in the self-governing British colony of Newfoundland in 1868 by the amateur naturalist, the Reverend Moses Harvey, and the subsequent description and naming of the fossil organism Aspidella terranovica in 1872 by Elkanah Billings, the father of Canadian paleontology. Both events could be misinterpreted as one transaction that began with the former event and ended with the latter event. Accounts published by Alexander Murray, the director of the Geological Survey of Newfoundland at the time, arguably may have inadvertently exacerbated the possibility for confusion. The determination of who first discovered fossils of A. terranovica and whose fossil material Billings primarily relied upon when he first described and named the taxon could be placed into doubt as a consequence. Although the confusion does not affect the undisputed priority that Billings holds in having described and named A. terranovica, the opportunity to remedy the confusion serves to benefit the historical record. The incomplete or ambiguous ascertaining and documenting of contextual information whenever an historically significant fossil discovery is made arguably may precipitate subsequent misinterpretations, distortions or omissions in the resulting historical narrative as it develops and becomes entrenched or mythologized in its retelling.RESUMECet article examine brievement la confusion possible concernant les decouvertes de fossiles Precambriens (Ediacaran) fabriques dans la colonie Britannique autonome de Terre-Neuve en 1868 par le naturaliste amateur, le Reverend Moses Harvey, et la description et l'appellation suivantes de l'organisme fossile Aspidella terranovica en 1872 par Elkanah Billings, le pere de la paleontologie Canadienne. Les deux evenements pourraient etre mal interpretes comme une transaction qui a commence avec l'evenement precedent et s'est terminee avec le dernier evenement. Les comptes publies par Alexander Murray, le directeur de la Commission Geologique de Terre-Neuve a l'epoque, ont sans doute peut-etre exacerbe par megarde la possibilite de confusion. La determination de qui a decouvert les fossiles d'abord de A. terranovica et dont Billings s'appuyait principalement sur le materiel fossile dont il a d'abord decrit et nomme le taxon pourrait etre mis en doute en consequence. Bien que la confusion ne porte pas atteinte a la priorite incontestee que Billings detient en ayant decrit et nomme A. terranovica, la possibilite de remedier a la confusion sert a beneficier du dossier historique. La constatation et la documentation incompletes ou ambigues de l'information contextuelle chaque fois qu'une decouverte fossilifere historiquement significative peut etre faite peut precipiter des interpretations, des distorsions ou des omissions subsequentes dans le recit historique resultant au fur et a mesure qu'il se developpe et devient ancre ou mythologise dans son recit.