The extant nannolith-bearing genera Ericiolus and Pileolosphaera are distinguished by the possession of triradiate nannoliths with a very similar and highly distinctive structural pattern. The nannoliths display three symmetrically arranged rays that develop from a nannolith center but show no obvious affinities to any other currently known extant coccolithophore. On this basis, we propose the establishment of a new family, Ericiolaceae fam. nov., to accommodate Ericiolus and Pileolosphaera.
Keywords:
Pileolosphaera
,coccolithophore
,systematics
,Ericiolus