working on Middle Devonian vertebrate material from Scotland and Orkney. Research started in 1974, collecting not only articulated material but also disarticulated material from non-fish beds. More specifically the latter included coprolites, hundreds of which have been thin-sectioned revealing the prey, mainly acanthodians but also invertebrates. Proper identification of the acanthodians was difficult because of lack of detailed information on scales etc. from literature. In order to fill this gap, we started destructive investigation on articulated specimens: making serial thin sections of spines and scales. Of great value was articulated fossil material from the Moray Firth area donated by Bob Davidson [See previous Ichthyolith Issuesand Burrow below - ed]. It is this part of our research that will be published in the near future. Regional information concerning the distribution of coprolites and their contents will follow the publication.

***************************** Dr. Alain BLIECK, Université des Sciences et Technologies de Lille Sciences de la Terre, U.R.A. 1365 du C.N.R.S., F-59655 Villeneuve d'Ascq Cedex, FRANCE
Alain.Blieck@univ-lille1.fr; Fax: 33 - 20436900

Alain spoke about Severnaya Zemlya heterostracans at Jurmala - co-operative work with Valya Talimaa. Following the meeting he went to Lithuania. He writes: My stay in Vilnius was very successful. I have heterostracans from all over theRussian Arctic to work on! Severnaya Zemlya + Timan- Pechora and others. I will certainly need a second life ...
In his report to IGCP406 this year Alain writes:
The French Group of IGCP 406 (A. Blieck, P.- Y. Gagnier & D. Goujet) has mainly worked on the taxonomy, biostratigraphy and palaeobiogeography of Devonian vertebrates from the Canadian, European (Spitsbergen), and Russian Arctic:
1)heterostracan pteraspidomorphs from the
Lower Devonian of Severnaya Zemlya
(Russia);
2)acanthodians from the Lower Devonian of
the Mackenzie District (NWT, Canada); 3)placoderms and thelodonts from the
Lower Devonian of Spitsbergen. Most
results confirm close
palaeobiogeographical relationships
between the "northern" margin of the Old
Red Sandstone Continent (Canadian
Arctic), the Barentsia block
(Spitsbergen), the Kara-Tajmyr block
(Severnaya Zemlya), and even with the
northern part of Siberia (Central Tajmyr
and Noril'sk region).

Books of note:
Blieck, A. Turner, S., Fraser, N. & Wimbledon,
W. (eds.) 1999. Gross Symposium part 3.
Modern Geology24, 1-2, 108pp.

Blieck A., & Turner S. (eds) 2000.
Palaeozoic Vertebrate Biochronology and
Global Marine / Non-Marine Correlation.
Final Report of IGCP 328 (1991-1996).
Courier Forschungs-Institut Senckenberg
22X. [It's coming!].

Papers of note:
Blieck A., & Janvier P. (1999).- Silurian-
Devonian vertebrate-dominated
communities, with particular reference to
agnathans.- In: Boucot A.J., & Lawson J.D.
(eds), Paleocommunities: a case study
from the Silurian and Lower Devonian [IGCP
53 Project Ecostratigraphy Final Report].
Cambridge Univ. Press, Chapter 9: 79-105. Blieck A., & Karatajute-Talimaa V. N. 1999.
Devonian heterostracan pteraspidomorphs
(Vertebrata) from Severnaya Zemlya
(Russia) - A preliminary report.Ichthyolith
Issues Special Publication 5, p11. Malvesy T., & Blieck A. (1999).- A quoi sert
un inventaire ? Les collections géologiques
du Musée d'Histoire Naturelle de Lille.- In: II
Journées Nationales du Patrimoine
Géologique (Soc. Géol. Nord - Musée Hist.
Nat. Lille - Cons. Sites Nat. Nord-Pas-de-
Calais; Lille, 16-18 juin 1999). Poster et
résumé, 1 p.

Field guide:
Blieck A. (1999).- UPRESA 8014 Workshop:
vertebrate Famennian localities (Upper
Devonian) of the Ardenne massif:
stratigraphy - palaeoenvironment -
palaeobiogeography (Villeneuve d'Ascq and
Belgium, 11-12 June 1999).- Field Trip
Guidebook, 8 p. [mimeographed].

Papers in press
Blieck, A. & Turner, S.: IGCP 328: Palaeozoic
Microvertebrates final scientific report --
Introduction.- includ. list of referees and
IGCP 328 final publication list 1991-1997.
Courier Forschungs-Institut Senckenberg. Blieck, A., Cloutier, R., with contributions of
Elliott, D.K., Goujet, D., Loboziak, S.,
Reed, R.C., Rodina, O., Steemans, P.,
Valiukevicius, J.J., V'yushkova, L., Yolkin,
E.A. &Young, V.T.: Biostratigraphical
correlations of Early Devonian vertebrate
assemblages of the Old Red Sandstone
Continent. Courier Forschungs-Institut
Senckenberg.
Blieck A., Malvesy T., Candilier A.-M.,
Cloutier R. & Poplin C. Les collections du
Musée d'Histoire Naturelle de Lille. 2:
Vertébrés paléozoïques.- Ann. Soc. Géol.
Nord; 2série, 7: 1-41; Villeneuve d'Ascq. Blieck A., Turner S., Young G.C., with
contributions of LuksevivsE., Mark-Kurik
E., Talimaa V.N. & Valiukevicius J.J. (in
press).- Devonian vertebrate biochronology
and global marine/non-marine correlation.-
In: Bultynck P. (ed.), International
Devonian Correlations. Volume II. Cour.
Forsch.-Inst. Senckenberg.

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