Biostratigraphical correlations of Early Devonian vertebrate assemblages of the Old Red Sandstone Continent

The Old Red Sandstone Continent was one of the major landmasses of the Devonian period, as a result of Early Palaeozoic orogenies. Numerous vertebrate-bearing fossiliferous localities are known from this palaeocontinent. They come from lithofacies varying from, e.g., siliciclastic to carbonate. In Lower Devonian rocks, most macrovertebrate remains have been collected in Old Red Sandstone type sediments, but recent investigations have yielded microvertebrate assemblages in various carbonate sediments. One of the main problems dealing with these Early Devonian vertebrate assemblages is concerned with biostratigraphical correlations between the different facies, and with the standard biostratigraphical zonations (conodonts and miospores in particular). This paper contains a review of vertebrate assemblages of the Lower Devonian Global Stratotype Sections and Points. These GSSP contain a poor record of vertebrates, but most recent samplings are promising as concerned with microremains (thelodont and acanthodian scales). Most important Early Devonian vertebrate-bearing sequences from around the Old Red Sandstone Continent are reviewed: west-central U.S.A., Canadian Arctic, Spitsbergen, Baltic area, Podolia, western Europe, eastern Canada.