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Erjiecaris
''Erjiecaris'' Is an extinct genus of bivalved Cambrian arthropod, known from the Chengjiang Biota of Yunnan, China. It is only known from a single species ''Erjiecaris minisculo''. Around long, It has an unusual flattened head-shield, with an elongate body with at least 19 segments and a forked tail similar to ''Waptia''. Unlike most bivalved arthropods, its simple, unstalked eyes are placed on top of the headshield. It was likely a nektobenthic (swimming above ocean floor) deposit feeder. The relationship of ''Erjiecaris'' to other arthropods was considered uncertain in its original description. A later study suggested it was a member of Hymenocarina Hymenocarina is an Order (biology), order of extinct marine arthropods known from the Cambrian. They possess bivalved carapaces, typically with exposed posteriors. Members of the group are morphologically diverse and had a variety of ecologies, i .... Despite the head shield being portrayed as flattened in most specimens, this is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hymenocarina
Hymenocarina is an Order (biology), order of extinct marine arthropods known from the Cambrian. They possess bivalved carapaces, typically with exposed posteriors. Members of the group are morphologically diverse and had a variety of ecologies, including as filter feeders and as predators. Recent research has generally considered them to be stem or crown group members of Mandibulata, due to the presence of Mandible (arthropod mouthpart), mandibles in well-preserved species. Taxonomy Hymenocarines are characterized by the combination of the following characters: bivalved, convex carapace covering Cephalothorax, cephalothoracic (combined head and thorax) region; cephalothorax bearing multisegmented antennae (though as an exception antennae are absent in ''Odaraia'') and rounded Mandible (arthropod mouthpart), mandibles and likely Maxilla (arthropod mouthpart), maxillae, post maxillae limbs with spiny, subdivided basis and Arthropod leg, endopods (lower, leg-like parts) with well-d ... [...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] |
Chengjiang Biota
The Maotianshan Shales () are a series of Early Cambrian sedimentary deposits in the Chiungchussu Formation or Heilinpu Formation, famous for their '' Konservat Lagerstätten'', deposits known for the exceptional preservation of fossilized organisms or traces. The Maotianshan Shales form one of some forty Cambrian fossil locations worldwide exhibiting exquisite preservation of rarely preserved, non-mineralized soft tissue, comparable to the fossils of the Burgess Shale of British Columbia, Canada. They take their name from Maotianshan Hill () in Chengjiang County, Yunnan Province, China. The most famous assemblage of organisms are referred to as the Chengjiang biota for the multiple scattered fossil sites in Chengjiang. The age of the Chengjiang Lagerstätte is locally termed Qiongzhusian, a stage correlated to the late Atdabanian Stage in Siberian sequences of the middle of the Early Cambrian. The shales date to ≤. Along with the Burgess Shale, the Maotianshan Shales ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Waptia
''Waptia'' is an extinct genus of marine arthropod from the Middle Cambrian of North America. It grew to a length of , and had a large bivalved carapace and a segmented body terminating into a pair of tail flaps. It was an active swimmer and likely a predator of soft-bodied prey. It is also one of the oldest animals with direct evidence of Parental investment, brood care. ''Waptia fieldensis'' is the only species classified under the genus ''Waptia'', and is known from the Burgess Shale ''Lagerstätte'' of British Columbia, Canada. Specimens of ''Waptia'' are also known from the Spence Shale of Utah, United States. Based on the number of individuals, ''Waptia fieldensis'' is the third most abundant arthropod from the Burgess Shale Formation, with thousands of specimens collected. It was among the first fossils found by the American paleontologist Charles D. Walcott in 1909. He described it in 1912 and named it after two mountains near the discovery site – Wapta Mountain and Moun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cambrian Arthropods
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, Panthalassa Ocean. The assembly of Gondwana during the Ediacaran and early Cambrian led to the development of new Convergent boundary, convergent plate boundaries and Volcanic arc, 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, life on Earth; prior to the Period, the majority of living organisms were small, Unicellular organism, unicellular and poorly preserved. Complex, multicellular organisms gradually became more common during the Ediacaran, but it ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fossil Taxa Described In 2014
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved in amber, hair, petrified wood and DNA remnants. The totality of fossils is known as the ''fossil record''. Though the fossil record is incomplete, numerous studies have demonstrated that there is enough information available to give a good understanding of the pattern of diversification of life on Earth. In addition, the record can predict and fill gaps such as the discovery of ''Tiktaalik'' in the arctic of Canada. Paleontology includes the study of fossils: their age, method of formation, and evolutionary significance. Specimens are sometimes considered to be fossils if they are over 10,000 years old. The oldest fossils are around 3.48 billion years to 4.1 billion years old. Early edition, published online before print. The o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
