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Vetulicola Cuneata
''Vetulicola cuneata'' ("wedged-shaped ancient dweller") is a species of extinct marine animal from the Early Cambrian Chengjiang biota of China. It was described by Hou Xian-guang in 1987 from the Lower Cambrian Chiungchussu Formation, and became the first animal (type species) under an eponymous phylum Vetulicolia. Remarked as "enigmatic creatures" and originally classified as an arthropod, it is recognised as a deuterostome along with other related species, for which a separate class (Vetulicolida), order ( Vetulicolata), family ( Vetulicolidae) and ultimately a new clade (Vetulicolia) were created based on its name. Discovery and taxonomy In 1984, Hou Xian-guang of the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, explored the Chiungchussu Formation in Chengjiang, China. At the Maotianshan Hill, from which the sediments called Maotianshan Shales were already established to be of Cambrian in origin, he found a variety of animal fossils. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cambrian
The Cambrian ( ) is the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, and the Phanerozoic Eon. The Cambrian lasted 51.95 million years from the end of the preceding Ediacaran period 538.8 Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Ordovician Period 486.85 Ma. Most of the continents lay in the southern hemisphere surrounded by the vast Panthalassa Ocean. The assembly of Gondwana during the Ediacaran and early Cambrian led to the development of new convergent plate boundaries and continental-margin arc magmatism along its margins that helped drive up global temperatures. Laurentia lay across the equator, separated from Gondwana by the opening Iapetus Ocean. The Cambrian marked a profound change in life on Earth; prior to the Period, the majority of living organisms were small, unicellular and poorly preserved. Complex, multicellular organisms gradually became more common during the Ediacaran, but it was not until the Cambrian that fossil diversity seems to rapidly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carapace
A carapace is a dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the underside is called the plastron. In botany, a carapace refers to the hard outer cover of a seed which protects the inner embryo. Crustaceans In crustaceans, the carapace functions as a protective cover over the cephalothorax (i.e., the fused head and thorax, as distinct from the abdomen behind). Where it projects forward beyond the eyes, this projection is called a rostrum. The carapace is calcified to varying degrees in different crustaceans. Zooplankton within the phylum Crustacea also have a carapace. These include Cladocera, ostracods, and isopods, but isopods only have a developed "cephalic shield" carapace covering the head. Arachnids In arachnids, the carapace is formed by the fusion of prosomal tergites into a single pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vetulicola Cuneata ウェツリコラ クニエータ
''Vetulicola'' is an extinct genus of marine animal discovered from the Cambrian of China. It is the eponymous member of the enigmatic taxon Vetulicolia, which is of uncertain affinities but may belong to the deuterostomes. The name was derived from ''Vetulicola cuneata,'' the first species described by Hou Xian-guang in 1987 from the Lower Cambrian Chiungchussu Formation in Chengjiang, China. Etymology ''Vetulicola'' is a compound Latin word composed of ''vetuli'', meaning "old," or "ancient," and ''cola'', meaning "inhabitant." Description The type species, ''Vetulicola cuneata'', as originally described by Hou Xian-guang in 1987, has a body plan similar to those of arthropods and composed of two distinct parts of approximately equal length. The anterior part is rectangular with a carapace-like structure of four rigid cuticular plates, with a large mouth at the front end. The posterior section is slender, strongly cuticularised and placed dorsally. Paired openings connecting ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Didazoon Haoae
''Didazoon haoae'' is an extinct species of vetulicolid vetulicolian described by Shu, et al. based on fossils found in the Qiongzhusi (Chiungchussu) Formation, Yu'anshan Member (Eoredlichia zone), Early Cambrian, Lower Cambrian, in the Dabanqiao area (Kunming), about 60 km northwest of Chengjiang, China. Etymology "Dida" abbreviates (in Chinese) the China University of Geosciences (other), China University of Geosciences. Description The fossils show that the body of the animal was covered in a thin, flexible cuticle. The anterior part of the body was divided into six Segment (biology), segments, with fairly broad membranes separating the segments, and the Posterior (anatomy), posterior part of the body was divided into seven segments. The constriction between the anterior and posterior parts of the animal shows creasing, and the authors hypothesize that it was quite flexible. The fossils are interpreted as showing a large anterior opening, presumably a mouth, a s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jawless Fish
Agnatha (; ) or jawless fish is a paraphyletic infraphylum of animals in the subphylum Vertebrata of the phylum Chordata, characterized by the lack of jaws. The group consists of both extant taxon, living (Cyclostomi, cyclostomes such as hagfishes and lampreys) and Extinction, extinct clades (e.g. conodonts and Cephalaspidomorphi, cephalaspidomorphs, among others). They are sister taxon, sister to vertebrates with jaws known as gnathostomes, who evolution, evolved from jawless ancestors during the early Silurian by developing folding joint, articulations in the first pairs of gill arches. Sequencing, Molecular data, both from rRNA and from mtDNA as well as Embryology, embryological data, strongly supports the hypothesis that both groups of living agnathans, hagfishes and lampreys, are more closely related to each other than to Gnathostomata, jawed fish, forming the Class (biology), superclass Cyclostomi. The oldest fossil agnathans appeared in the Cambrian. Living jawless fish c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xidazoon Stephanus
''Pomatrum'' is an extinct vetulicolian, the senior synonym of ''Xidazoon''; the latter taxon was described by Shu, et al. (1999) based on fossils found in the Qiongzhusi (Chiungchussu) Formation, Yu'anshan Member (Eoredlichia zone), Lower Cambrian, Haikou, (Kunming), about 50 km west of Chengjiang, China. The fossils show that the body of the animal was divided into two parts. The anterior part of the body is moderately inflated, with a prominent mouth circlet. It has faint transverse divisions towards the front, but is otherwise smooth. The mouth circlet consists of about 30 plates divided into inner and outer regions. The anterior section has five structures on each side, which are interpreted as gills. A dark region running close to the ventral and posterior margins is interpreted as an endostyle. The condition of the anterior portion of the fossils suggests that it was thin-walled, i.e., that the anterior portion was largely hollow. The posterior part of the body taper ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, world's third-oldest university in continuous operation. The university's founding followed the arrival of scholars who left the University of Oxford for Cambridge after a dispute with local townspeople. The two ancient university, ancient English universities, although sometimes described as rivals, share many common features and are often jointly referred to as Oxbridge. In 1231, 22 years after its founding, the university was recognised with a royal charter, granted by Henry III of England, King Henry III. The University of Cambridge includes colleges of the University of Cambridge, 31 semi-autonomous constituent colleges and List of institutions of the University of Cambridge#Schools, Faculties, and Departments, over 150 academic departm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Simon Conway Morris
Simon Conway Morris (born 1951) is an English palaeontologist, evolutionary biologist, and astrobiologist known for his study of the fossils of the Burgess Shale and the Cambrian explosion. The results of these discoveries were celebrated in Stephen Jay Gould's 1989 book '' Wonderful Life''. Conway Morris's own book on the subject, ''The Crucible of Creation'' (1998), however, is critical of Gould's presentation and interpretation. Conway Morris, a Christian, holds to theistic views of biological evolution. He has held the Chair of Evolutionary Palaeobiology in the Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge since 1995. Biography Early years Conway Morris was born on 6 November 1951. A native of Carshalton, Surrey, he was brought up in London, England. and went on to study geology at Bristol University, achieving a First Class Honours degree. He then moved to Cambridge University and completed a PhD at St John's College under Harry Blackmore Whittington. He ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northwest University (China)
Northwest University () is a public university located in Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. It is affiliated with the Province of Shaanxi, and co-funded by the Shaanxi Provincial People's Government and the Ministry of Education. The university is part of Project 211 and the Double First-Class Construction. History The earliest predecessor of the school was the Shaanxi University Hall and the Capital University Hall Accelerated Science and Technology School in 1902. The school was first called Northwest University in 1912 and changed its name to National Northwest University in 1923. In 1937, the school formed the National Xi'an Temporary University with the National Peking University, Peking Normal University, Peiyang University College of Engineering, and Peking Research Institute, which moved west to Shaanxi. In 1938, National Xi'an Temporary University was changed to National Northwest Associated University. In 1939, it was renamed National Northwest University. After the war, the un ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pomatrum Ventralis
''Pomatrum'' is an extinct vetulicolian, the senior synonym of ''Xidazoon''; the latter taxon was described by Shu, et al. (1999) based on fossils found in the Qiongzhusi (Chiungchussu) Formation, Yu'anshan Member (Eoredlichia zone), Lower Cambrian, Haikou, (Kunming), about 50 km west of Chengjiang, China. The fossils show that the body of the animal was divided into two parts. The anterior part of the body is moderately inflated, with a prominent mouth circlet. It has faint transverse divisions towards the front, but is otherwise smooth. The mouth circlet consists of about 30 plates divided into inner and outer regions. The anterior section has five structures on each side, which are interpreted as gills. A dark region running close to the ventral and posterior margins is interpreted as an endostyle. The condition of the anterior portion of the fossils suggests that it was thin-walled, i.e., that the anterior portion was largely hollow. The posterior part of the body taper ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Annelida
The annelids (), also known as the segmented worms, are animals that comprise the phylum Annelida (; ). The phylum contains over 22,000 extant species, including ragworms, earthworms, and leeches. The species exist in and have adapted to various ecologies – some in marine environments as distinct as tidal zones and hydrothermal vents, others in fresh water, and yet others in moist terrestrial environments. The annelids are Symmetry in biology, bilaterally symmetrical, Triploblasty, triploblastic, coelomate, invertebrate organisms. They also have Parapodium, parapodia for locomotion. Most textbooks still use the traditional division into polychaetes (almost all marine), oligochaetes (which include earthworms) and leech-like species. Cladistics, Cladistic research since 1997 has radically changed this scheme, viewing leeches as a sub-group of oligochaetes and oligochaetes as a sub-group of polychaetes. In addition, the Siboglinidae, Pogonophora, Echiura and Sipuncula, previ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burgess Shale
The Burgess Shale is a fossil-bearing deposit exposed in the Canadian Rockies of British Columbia, Canada. It is famous for the exceptional preservation of the soft parts of its fossils. At old (middle Cambrian), it is one of the earliest fossil beds containing soft-part imprints. The rock unit is a black shale and crops out at a number of localities near the town of Field in Yoho National Park and the Kicking Horse Pass. Another outcrop is in Kootenay National Park 42 km to the south. History and significance The Burgess Shale was discovered by palaeontologist Charles Walcott on 30 August 1909, towards the end of the season's fieldwork. He returned in 1910 with his sons, daughter, and wife, establishing a quarry on the flanks of Fossil Ridge. The significance of soft-bodied preservation, and the range of organisms he recognised as new to science, led him to return to the quarry almost every year until 1924. At that point, aged 74, he had amassed over 65,000 s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
