A palaeoscolecid worm from the Burgess Shale. (15th October 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Smith, Martin R.; Sigwart, Julia
• Is Part Of: Palaeontology. Volume 58:Part 6(2015:Nov.)
• Page Start: 973
• Page End: 979
• Publication Date: 2015-10-15
• Subjects: Paleontology -- Periodicals; 560
• DOI: 10.1111/pala.12210
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0031-0239

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main" id="pala12210-abs-0001"> <title>Abstract</title> <p>Palaeoscolecid worms are a ubiquitous group of Early Palaeozoic ecdysozoans that are curiously lacking in the archetypal Cambrian Lagerstätten, the Burgess Shale. Here I describe <italic>Scathascolex minor</italic> gen. et sp. nov, the first unequivocal palaeoscolecid from this site. <italic>Scathascolex</italic> is armoured with simple <italic>Hadimopanella</italic>‐like plates, but lacks smaller platelets, pointing to a close affinity with the Palaeoscolecida <italic>sensu stricto</italic>. Neither preservational nor environmental factors account for the scarcity of palaeoscolecids in the Burgess Shale, which presumably represents an ecological phenomenon.</p> </abstract>