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Thaumaptilon is a fossil from the middle Cambrian bearing striking resemblance to a biota that had almost disappeared at the start of the Cambrian, . It was up to 20 cm long, and attached itself to the sea floor with a holdfast.
Leaf-shaped, Thaumaptilon had a central axis extending to its tip, with many "ribs" radiating from it, in a similar manner to the ribs of a leaf. these may have had canals connecting them to the axis. One side of its surface was covered in spots, which might have been zooids.
Thaumaptilon is considered important due to its resemblance to some Ediacarans; it was believed to be a member of this biota. It was also originally believed to be a relative of the sea-pens, although this hypothesis is now discredited.[1]
The name Thaumaptilon derives from the Greek Thauma, "wonderful", + ptilion, "soft feather".
See also
References
- ^ Antcliffe, Jonathan B.; Brasier, Martin D. (2007). "Charnia and sea pens are poles apart". Journal of the Geological Society 164 (1): 49–51. doi:. http://jgs.geoscienceworld.org/cgi/content/abstract/164/1/49.
Thaumaptilon was described here: Conway Morris, S. (1993). "Ediacaran-like fossils in Cambrian Burgess Shale-type faunas of North America". Palaeontology 36 (3): 593–635. http://paleobiology.si.edu/burgess/thaumaptilon.html
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