Northwestern University researchers have discovered the earliest known fossils of bryozoans on Earth

Xi'an, October 28 (Xinhua) -- On the 27th, the journal Nature published the latest results of Doctoral Student Zhang Zhiliang and others under the guidance of Professor Zhang Zhifei of the Early Life Research Team of Northwest University - "Fossil Evidence Reveals that the Moss Animal Phylum originated in the Early Cambrian Period", and the earliest known fossil of bryozoan (moss moss) on the earth was found in Zhenba County in southern Shaanxi.

The research results further support the "three-act Cambrian explosion" hypothesis proposed by the early life research team of Northwest University led by Shu Degan, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, perfecting the construction process of cambrian earth animal trees lasting 40 million years, and effectively connecting the explosive and phased fossil evidence chains of the three major animal subcategories (basic animals, protozoa and post-mouth animals).

The Cambrian explosion is the most magnificent event known on Earth for the eruption of life by symmetrical animals on both sides. 540-518 million years ago, early ancestor representatives of almost all modern animals, including vertebrates, suddenly appeared in the oceans. However, the moss phylum has lacked a conclusive Cambrian fossil record. Their individual size, group life, modular growth, and ecological complexity have long been considered the product of ordovician radiation.

The research team of Northwest University found millimeter-sized micro-fossilized stone in the biodestic limestone of the Xi artemisia section of the Xiaoyangba Section of the Xiaoyangba Formation in Zhenba County, Shaanxi Province, through acid etching experiments. After the preliminary research of the research group and the cooperation of relevant scholars inside and outside the United Nations, it is believed that these microchemical stones are the earliest bryozoic fossils on the earth, revealing the Cambrian origin of this category. After analysis, it is shown that cambrian lichen fossils are basal taxa of bryozoans, representing the most primitive ancestor types. The discovery pushed the origins of mosses forward by at least 50 million years.

In addition, through analysis, Zhang Zhiliang et al. believe that the modular construction of multi-level plasticity and complexity of bryozoan populations originated 530 million years ago, elucidating important ecological innovations during the Cambrian explosion.

Source: Xinhua News Agency