''Cochleatina'' is an organic-walled

microfossil A microfossil is a fossil that is generally between 0.001 mm and 1 mm in size, the visual study of which requires the use of light or electron microscopy. A fossil which can be studied with the naked eye or low-powered magnification, ...

Small Carbonaceous Fossil Small carbonaceous fossils (SCFs) are sub-millimetric organic remains of organisms preserved in sedimentary strata. This category of fossils has traditionally included robust or thick-walled entities such as plant spores, acritarchs and chitinozoa ...

') known from the late

Ediacaran The Ediacaran Period ( ) is a geological period that spans 96 million years from the end of the Cryogenian Period 635 million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Cambrian Period 538.8 Mya. It marks the end of the Proterozoic Eon, and th ...

period and early

Cambrian The Cambrian Period ( ; sometimes symbolized C with bar, 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 ...

Fortunian The Fortunian age marks the beginning of the Phanerozoic Eon, the Paleozoic Era, and the Cambrian Period. It is the first of the two stages of the Terreneuvian series. Its base is defined as the first appearance of the trace fossil ''Treptichnus p ...

Stage. ''Cochleatina'' comprises a complex spiral ribbon structure, with a serrated outer margin. These spirals are frequently found embedded in an organic sheet. ''Cochleatina'' is a rare example of a fossil taxon known to span the Ediacaran–Cambrian boundary.

Affinity

''Cochleatina's'' biological affinity is unknown. It has been variously regarded as the fossil remains of an animal, an algae, or a protist.

References

Incertae sedis Ediacaran life {{cambrian-stub