A paleontologist from the University of Leicester described a new genus and mysterious multi -scattered articulars using a fossilized example in South Africa twenty years ago.
Scientifically named Keurbos Susanae And after the mother of the discovery of the nickname ‘Sue’, the former arthropods lived about 444 million years ago during the Ordovician period.
“Sue is an insensitive, a headless wonder,” said Sarah Gabbott, Professor of Leicester University.
“It is remarkable that the interior is a mineralized time capsule: muscles, Sinews, tendons, and even the intestines are all protected in unimaginable details.”
“And still durable shell, legs and heads are missing – disappeared to decay 440 million years ago.”
“Now we are sure that it is a primitive marine arthropod, but the definitive evolutionary relations remain annoying.”
“Today, approximately 85% of the animals in the world contain arthropods and shrimp, lobster, spider, flowers, centipede and centipede.”
“There is an excellent fossil recording that extends more than 500 million years, but usually the fossil residues have external features, while the ‘sue’ is the opposite because its inner parts are the inner parts of the fossil.”
Fossilized example Keurbos Susanae He was found in South Africa.
“These layers were placed on the sea floor at a time when a destructive glacier deleted about 85% of the world species, 440 These layers were placed on the sea base,“ said Gabbott.
“Apparently, ‘Sue’ has swam, somehow seems to be protected from the worst of the freezing conditions and a fascinating animal community, including ‘sue’.”
“The conditions in the precipitors where ‘Sue’ was listened to were extremely toxic.”
“There was no oxygen, but it’s worse than fatal and smelled hydrogen sulfur.”
Researchers suspect that a strange chemical alchemy is working to create fossil and unusual external protection.
“But there is a disadvantage, because the unique protection of ‘Sue’ makes it difficult to compare it with other fossils of the period, and so how life fits the evolution tree remains a mystery.
“The quarry on the side of the small road I found at the beginning of my academic career 25 years ago disappeared, and therefore it is not possible to have other examples.”
“The interpretation of the fossil was incredibly difficult and I abolished the hope of finding another example without any head or legs.”
. to work It will be published in the magazine Paleontology.
______
Sarah Gabbott. 2025. Soom Şeyl (Ordovician) Conservatory-Lagertätte, a new euctropod from South Africa, with the extraordinary protection of cross-explanatory and myoanatomy. PaleontologyIn printing; Doi: 10.1002/spp2.70004
