Determination, statistical analysis, and interpretation of recurrent conodont groups in Middle and Upper Ordovician strata of the Cincinnati region (Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana)

Abstract

Conodonts-elements in large collections from the Cincinnati region are referable to 94 form-species. Derivation of an index of affinity for every possible pair of form-species in the collections permits extraction from an initial matrix of recurrent groups of positively related form-species. These groups are then analyzed individually by rank-correlation techniques to reveal more direct relationships among member form-species. By these procedures, natural conodont communities are defined and later analyzed to determine constituent multielement associates, many of which may be regarded as the skeletal apparatuses of 9natural9 or 9biologic9 conodont species. Statistical analysis of the studied collections yielded results comparable with those derived from empirical analysis of the same collections.