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Misszhouia
''Misszhouia'' is a genus of small to average sized (up to long) marine arthropods within the Naraoiidae family, that lived during the early Cambrian period. The only species presently known is ''Misszhouia longicaudata'' (the genus is monotypic) and the holotype was discovered in 1984. Etymology ''Misszhouia'' was named after "Miss Zhou" (Zhou Guiqin), to honour her for her skilled preparation of Chengjiang fossils. Description ''Misszhouia longicaudata'' is almost flat (dorso-ventrally). The upper (or dorsal) side of the body consists of a non-calcified headshield ( cephalon) and tailshield (pygidium) without body segments between. The body is narrowed at the articulation between cephalon and pygidium. The long many-segmented antennae are directed forward. There are no eyes. The gut has a relatively small diameter, and there are four pairs of relatively small digestive sacs (or caeca) in the cephalon only, and no branches towards the edge of the cephalon (unlike ''Nar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Naraoia
''Naraoia'' is a genus of small to average size (about 2-4½ cm long) marine arthropods within the family Naraoiidae, that lived from the early Cambrian to the late Silurian period. The species are characterized by a large alimentary system and sideways oriented antennas. Etymology The name is derived from Narao, the name of a group of small lakes in Cataract Brook canyon, above Hector on the Canadian Pacific Railway, British Columbia, Canada.Walcott, C.D. Middle Cambrian Branchiopoda, Malacostraca, Trilobita, and Merostomata. In: Cambrian Geology and Paleontology II. Smithsonian. 1914. s:Cambrian Geology and Paleontology/Volume 2/Middle Cambrian Branchiopoda, Malacostraca, Trilobita, and Merostomata History of the classification When the fossil was first discovered in Canada's Burgess Shale, it was believed to be a crustacean, such was the difference between this and other trilobites. Its continuous shield hid most of its structure, interfering with proper classification. Wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Naraoiidae
Naraoiidae is a family, of extinct, soft-shelled trilobite-like arthropods, that belongs to the order Nectaspida. Species included in the Naraoiidae are known from the second half of the Lower Cambrian to the end of the Upper Silurian. The total number of collection sites is limited and distributed over a vast period of time: Maotianshan Shale and Balang Formation (China), Burgess Shale and Bertie Formation (Canada), the Šárka Formation (Czech Republic), Emu Bay Shale (Australia), Idaho and Utah (USA). This is probably due to the rare occurrence of the right circumstances for soft tissue preservation, needed for these non-calcified exoskeletons. Ecology Naraoiids probably were deposit feeders (''Naraoia'' and ''Pseudonaraoia''), predators or scavengers (''Misszhouia''), living on the sea floor. Description The species of the family ''Naraoiidae'' are almost flat (dorso-ventrally). The upper (or dorsal) side of the body consists of a non-calcified transversely oval or se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nektaspida
Nektaspida (also called Naraoiida, Nektaspia and Nectaspida) is an extinct order of non- mineralised artiopodan arthropods. They are known from the mid-Cambrian to the upper Silurian. Originally classified as trilobites, which they superficially resemble, they are now placed as close relatives as members of the Trilobitomorpha within Artiopoda. The order is divided into three major families; Emucarididae, Liwiidae, and Naraoiidae. Naming history and taxonomic placement The order was originally proposed by Raymond in 1920 as Nektaspia. Størmer corrected it to Nectaspida for the 1959 ''Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology'' to conform with the names of the other trilobite orders. Whittington described it in 1985 with the spelling Nektaspida; the revised 1997 Treatise by Raymond and Fortey uses this spelling, as do other modern works. Whittington (1985) placed the order in the Trilobita. Cotton & Braddy (2000) place it in a new "Trilobite clade" containing the Trilobita, recogni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atdabanian
Cambrian Stage 3 is the still unnamed third stage of the Cambrian. It succeeds Cambrian Stage 2 and precedes Cambrian Stage 4, although neither its base nor top have been formally defined. The plan is for its lower boundary to correspond approximately to the first appearance of trilobites, about million years ago, though the globally asynchronous appearance of trilobites warrants the use of a separate, globally synchronous marker to define the base. The upper boundary and beginning of Cambrian Stage 4 is informally defined as the first appearance of the trilobite genera ''Olenellus'' or '' Redlichia'' around million years ago. Naming The International Commission on Stratigraphy has not officially named the 3rd stage of the Cambrian. The stage approximately corresponds to the "Atdabanian", which is used by geologists working in Siberia. Biostratigraphy The oldest trilobite known is ''Lemdadella'' which appears at the beginning of the '' Fallotaspis'' zone. The Cambrian radiatio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cambrian Arthropods
The Cambrian Period ( ; sometimes symbolized Ꞓ) was the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, and of the Phanerozoic Eon. The Cambrian lasted 53.4 million years from the end of the preceding Ediacaran Period 538.8 million years ago (mya) to the beginning of the Ordovician Period mya. Its subdivisions, and its base, are somewhat in flux. The period was established as "Cambrian series" by Adam Sedgwick, who named it after Cambria, the Latin name for 'Cymru' (Wales), where Britain's Cambrian rocks are best exposed. Sedgwick identified the layer as part of his task, along with Roderick Murchison, to subdivide the large "Transition Series", although the two geologists disagreed for a while on the appropriate categorization. The Cambrian is unique in its unusually high proportion of sedimentary deposits, sites of exceptional preservation where "soft" parts of organisms are preserved as well as their more resistant shells. As a result, our understanding of the Cambrian biolo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carnivore
A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose food and energy requirements derive from animal tissues (mainly muscle, fat and other soft tissues) whether through hunting or scavenging. Nomenclature Mammal order The technical term for mammals in the order Carnivora is ''carnivoran'', and they are so-named because most member species in the group have a carnivorous diet, but the similarity of the name of the order and the name of the diet causes confusion. Many but not all carnivorans are meat eaters; a few, such as the large and small cats (felidae) are ''obligate'' carnivores (see below). Other classes of carnivore are highly variable. The Ursids, for example: While the Arctic polar bear eats meat almost exclusively (more than 90% of its diet is meat), almost all other bear species are omnivorous, and one species, the giant panda, is nearly exclusively herbivorous. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scavenger
Scavengers are animals that consume dead organisms that have died from causes other than predation or have been killed by other predators. While scavenging generally refers to carnivores feeding on carrion, it is also a herbivorous feeding behavior. Scavengers play an important role in the ecosystem by consuming dead animal and plant material. ''Decomposers'' and detritivores complete this process, by consuming the remains left by scavengers. Scavengers aid in overcoming fluctuations of food resources in the environment. The process and rate of scavenging is affected by both biotic and abiotic factors, such as carcass size, habitat, temperature, and seasons. Etymology Scavenger is an alteration of ''scavager,'' from Middle English ''skawager'' meaning "customs collector", from ''skawage'' meaning "customs", from Old North French ''escauwage'' meaning "inspection", from ''schauwer'' meaning "to inspect", of Germanic origin; akin to Old English ''scēawian'' and German ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Predator
Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill the host) and parasitoidism (which always does, eventually). It is distinct from scavenging on dead prey, though many predators also scavenge; it overlaps with herbivory, as seed predators and destructive frugivores are predators. Predators may actively search for or pursue prey or wait for it, often concealed. When prey is detected, the predator assesses whether to attack it. This may involve ambush or pursuit predation, sometimes after stalking the prey. If the attack is successful, the predator kills the prey, removes any inedible parts like the shell or spines, and eats it. Predators are adapted and often highly specialized for hunting, with acute senses such as vision, hearing, or smell. Many predatory animals, both vertebrate and i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chengjiang
Chengjiang (; earlier Tchinkiang) is a city located in Yuxi, Yunnan Province, China, just north of Fuxian Lake. Administrative divisions Chengjiang City has 2 subdistricts and 4 townships. ;2 subdistricts * Fenglu () * Longjie () ;4 towns Chengjiang Fossil Site In evolutionary biology, and especially paleontology, Chengjiang is noted for soft-tissue fossil finds, of the Maotianshan Shales, dated less than 518 million years ago during the Cambrian explosion, which "are as spectacular as the Burgess Shale fauna, and significantly older." Also These fossils are considered one of the most important fossil finds of the 20th century. They contain an exquisite degree of detail, cover a diverse range of fauna, and are significant in attempts to understand the evolution of life on Earth. In 2012, the Changjiang Fossil Site became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The fossils were first discovered by Henri Mansuy and Jaques Deprat who described them in 1912, the year after Charles Walc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Podomere
The arthropod leg is a form of jointed appendage of arthropods, usually used for walking. Many of the terms used for arthropod leg segments (called podomeres) are of Latin origin, and may be confused with terms for bones: ''coxa'' (meaning hip, plural ''coxae''), ''trochanter'', ''femur'' (plural ''femora''), ''tibia'' (plural ''tibiae''), ''tarsus'' (plural ''tarsi''), ''ischium'' (plural ''ischia''), ''metatarsus'', ''carpus'', ''dactylus'' (meaning finger), ''patella'' (plural ''patellae''). Homologies of leg segments between groups are difficult to prove and are the source of much argument. Some authors posit up to eleven segments per leg for the most recent common ancestor of extant arthropods but modern arthropods have eight or fewer. It has been argued that the ancestral leg need not have been so complex, and that other events, such as successive loss of function of a ''Hox''-gene, could result in parallel gains of leg segments. In arthropods, each of the leg segments ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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