Article: Strange fossil defies grouping

Strange fossil defies grouping

A strange 525 million-year-old fossil creature is baffling scientists
because it does not fit neatly into any existing animal groups.

The animal, from the early Cambrian Period, might have belonged to a now
extinct mollusc-like phylum, academics from America and China say.

Other researchers have suggested the creature could represent an early
annelid or arthropod.

Details are published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

The 5-10cm-long (2-4 inch) fossil, from Anning in China, had a flattened
body and horizontal fins which, researchers think, could have been used to
support it as it moved along the sea floor. It also had well developed
senses, including a pair of eyes on stalks.

The trouble is the animal, named Vetustodermis planus, did not possess a set
of features, or characters, which placed it clearly within any known group.
When it was first described in 1979, Vetustodermis was included in the
annelid category. Later researchers argued against this classification,
saying it was, in fact, either an arthropod or a mollusc.

Full Text at the BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4156544.stm

Comment:
I'll make up my mind after a feed of these fishies at my local restaurant...

Posted by
Robert Karl Stonjek


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