| During the Devonian, the continents of Baltica and Laurentia collided, creating Laurussia. Biogeographic data provide information on the configuration of epeiric seas and land barriers permitting or barring taxonomic dispersal of marine animals. Bryozoan generic data are analyzed using Parsimony Analysis of Endemicity and Simpson's Index of Overall Faunal Similarity to identify biomes and provinces that existed during the Devonian Period. Endemic and shared genera are combined with lithologic data and time scales to present a picture of geodispersal and vicariance over time. Forty-four local areas contain significant diversity to be used in the analyses, and eight biomes are described: Appohimchi II, Old World II, Michigan, Ohio II, Appohimchi Ia, Appohimchi Ib, Ohio I, and Old World I. Two provinces are proposed, Laurussia I and Laurussia II, which are distinguished temporally. A major extinction event occurred within Bryozoa during the Devonian, and a lack of endemic taxa makes both biomes and provinces indistinguishable after the Givetian. The North American biomes were more heavily affected by the Givetian mass extinction than the European areas. |
