Kulparia

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Kulparia is a genus of fossil cyanobacteria that formed stromatolites in the late Neoproterozoic era, about 1,000 to 600 million years ago. It was named after the town of Kulpara in South Australia, near where the first specimen was found.

What it looks like:
- Long, bumpy columns either radiate outward or run parallel.
- Columns branch in α- or β-parallel patterns.
- Bridges between columns are common and often coalesce, with walls between them.
- Column margins are moderately to very bumpy.

How it’s different:
- Kulparia’s bumpy column margins and frequent bridging/coalescing distinguish it from similar stromatolites such as Minjaria and Boxonia.

Species:
- Kulparia kulparensis
- Kulparia alicia

Where fossils were found:
- Kulparia kulparensis: Umbertana Group, northern Yorke Peninsula, South Australia, about 6.4 km south of Kulpara.
- Kulparia alicia: Loves Creek Member, Bitter Springs Formation, Amadeus Basin, Western Australia, about 3.7 km west-southwest of Jay Creek Aboriginal Settlement.

Taxonomy (simplified):
- Domain: Bacteria
- Phylum: Cyanobacteriota
- Class: Cyanophyceae
- Genus: Kulparia
- Type species: Kulparia kulparensis