Anomalocaris fossil fragments. Illustration of some of the fossil fragments of Anomalocaris, dating from the Cambrian Period and found in the Burgess
Anomalocaris fossil fragments. Illustration of some of the fossil fragments of Anomalocaris, dating from the Cambrian Period and found in the Burgess Shale site (508 million years old) in British Columbia, Canada. The fragments were initially wrongly identified as other organisms, before their true nature was determined. At left left, a 'shrimp tail' was the feeding arms; at top right, a 'sponge' was the squashed body; at lower centre a 'jellyfish' was the mouthparts. The Burgess Shale fossil site records a key moment in Earth's history, the Cambrian Explosion, when an unprecedented period of evolution produced a wide diversity of body types, including those of today's animals.
Size: 5426px × 4217px
Photo credit: © JOHN SIBBICK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: -, america, animal, anomalocaris, arthropod, arthropods, artwork, biological, biology, body, british, burgess, cambrian, canada, columbia, deduction, evolution, evolutionary, explosion, extinct, fauna, floor, fossil, fragmentary, fragments, historical, history, illustration, incorrect, invertebrate, invertebrates, jigsaw, marine, middle, natural, nature, north, ocean, palaeobiological, palaeobiology, palaeontological, palaeontology, palaeozoological, palaeozoology, paleobiological, paleobiology, paleontological, paleontology, paleozoological, paleozoology, parts, predator, predatory, prehistoric, prehistory, puzzle, record, sea, seabed, shale, swimming, underwater, water, wildlife, wrong, zoological, zoology
