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Vetulicola
''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 connecti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vetulicolia
Vetulicolia is a group of bilaterian marine animals encompassing several extinct species from the Cambrian, and possibly Ediacaran, periods. As of 2023, the majority of workers favor placing Vetulicolians in the stem group of the Chordata, but some continue to favor a more crownward placement as a sister group to the Tunicata. It was initially erected as a monophyletic clade with the rank of phylum in 2001, with subsequent work supporting its monophyly. However, more recent research suggests that vetulicolians may be paraphyletic and form a basal evolutionary grade of stem chordates. Etymology The taxon name, Vetulicolia, is derived from the type genus, '' Vetulicola'', which is a compound Latin word composed of ''vetuli'' "old" and ''cola'' "inhabitant". It was named after '' Vetulicola cuneata'', the first species of the group described in 1987. Description The vetulicolian body plan comprises two parts: a voluminous rostral (anterior) forebody, tipped with an anteri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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] |
Vetulicolidae
Vetulicolidae is a vetulicolian family from the Cambrian Stage 3 Maotianshan Shale and Sirius Passet Lagerstätte that consists of ''Vetulicola'', ''Beidazoon'', and ''Ooedigera''. It is distinguished from the Didazoonidae by a harder body wall and the lack of an oral disc. Description Members of the Vetulicolidae have relatively robust body coverings, with a subquadrate to elongate (in lateral view) anterior part and an elongate, segmented posterior part. The marginal zone of the anterior part may have short projections dorsally and postereodorsally. As diagnosed by Aldridge ''et al.'' in 2007, the anterior part is said to bear five annulations, and a lateral groove is not mentioned for the family. However, with and the addition of ''Ooedigera'' not all genera possess annulations in the anterior section, and with the re-classification of ''Yuyuannozoon'' each genus currently assigned to this family bears a lateral groove. Vetulicolids range in size from ''Beidazoon'' (around ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vetulicola Rectangulata
''Vetulicola rectangulata'' (meaning "rectangular ancient dweller") is a species of extinct animal from the Early Cambrian of the Chengjiang biota of China. Regarded as a deuterostome, it has characteristic rectangular anterior body on which the posterior tail region is attached. It was described by Luo Huilin and Hu Shi-xue in 1999. Description ''V. rectangulata'' was described by Luo Huilin and Hu Shi-xue of the Yunnan Institute of Biological Science in 1999. The fossils were discovered from the Early Cambrian Chengjiang deposits in Kunming region, Yunnan, China. Like ''V. cuneata,'' ''V. rectangulata'' has a body composed of two distinct parts of approximately equal length. The anterior part is oval to rectangular in shape, enclosed by a carapace-like structure of four rigid cuticular plates fused together, with a small mouth at the front end: there is a keel-like extension of the body wall on the top and belly. Unlike in ''V. cuneata'', the mouth region does not protrude ou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beidazoon
''Beidazoon venustum'' is a marine deuterostome from the group Vetulicolia. It originates from the lower Cambrian Chengjiang biota of Yunnan Province, China, and was discovered in 2005. It is known as the smallest described vetulicolian, and for its surface being covered in many small nodes. Description ''Beidazoon venustum'' had a hard outer shell similar to ''Vetulicola'', with a single band mouth. Its tail is asymmetrical and composed of a hard shell extending from the upper posterior, an axial lobe of seven segments, and a ventral lobe with four or five segments. According to its discoverer, ''Beidazoon's'' shell was "beautifully ornamented with numerous nodes". Taxonomy The family Beidazoonidae was erected to house ''Beidazoon'' at the time of its discovery. However, ''Beidazoons junior synonym ''Bullivetula'' was assigned to Vetulicolidae Vetulicolidae is a vetulicolian family from the Cambrian Stage 3 Maotianshan Shale and Sirius Passet Lagerstätte that consists of ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vetulicolida
Vetulicolida is a class of vetulicolians. It consists of the order Vetulicolata (which contains the families Vetulicolidae and Didazoonidae) and the genus '' Nesonektris'', which is of uncertain placement. It is distinguished from the Banffozoa by the number and size of posterior segments as well as features of the anterior section. Description The Vetulicolidans anterior body appears to consist of fused segments, with five gill pouches at the intersections of the segment boundaries and a lateral groove that does not reach the posterior edge. The posterior section is clearly segmented with relatively wide segments comparred to banffozoans such as ''Banffia'' or '' Heteromorphus''. Taxonomy In 1997, Chen and Zhou defined Vetulicolida as a class to contain '' Vetulicola'' and '' Banffia''. Hou and Bergström also defined Vetulicolida that same year, but as an order containing the new family Vetulicolidae. The name Vetulicolida was used at either or both ranks until 2007, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maotianshan Shales
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 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ooedigera
''Ooedigera peeli'' is an extinct vetulicolian from the Early Cambrian of North Greenland. The front body was flattened horizontally, oval-shaped, likely bearing a reticulated or anastomosing pattern, and had 5 evenly-spaced gill pouches along the midline. The tail was also bulbous and flattened horizontally, but was divided into 7 plates connected by flexible membranes, allowing movement. ''Ooedigera'' likely swam by moving side-to-side like a fish. It may have lived in an oxygen minimum zone alongside several predators in an ecosystem based on chemosynthetic microbial mats, and was possibly a deposit or filter feeder living near the seafloor. Etymology The genus name ''Ooedigera'' derives from Ancient Greek ''ooedis'' "egg-shaped/oval" and ''geros'' "old". The species name ''peeli'' is in honour of Professor John S. Peel from the Geological Survey of Greenland, who especially researched the locality ''Ooedigera'' was discovered in. Taxonomy The type specimen MGUH 29279 wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
