Toronto, Gatra.com – Hundreds of fossils of an ancient sea creature with scratch-like claws and a head that resembles a fictional spaceship have been discovered in a Canadian excavation, providing a wealth of information about important past predators in the evolution of life on Earth.
Scientists call these creatures Cambroraster falcatuswhich are also distant relatives of today’s arthropods. The animal group includes insects, spiders, and crabs. This ancient animal is believed to have lived during the Cambrian Period, 506 million years ago. The time when all animals lived in the ocean.
“Most animals from the Cambrian period were small, a few centimetres at most. However, Cambroraster was a giant, measuring about 30 centimetres long,” said Joe Moysiuk, a paleontologist at the Royal Ontario Museum and the University of Toronto.
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Reported ReutersCambroraster was discovered during excavations in Kootenay National Park in the Canadian Rockies. These mountains are made up of rock formations and are known as Burgess Shale. So far, this is where amazing fossils of Cambrian animals have been discovered. The Cambrian was a period of evolutionary experimentation during which almost all major animal groups appeared.
“With its large head, small body and upward-facing eyes, the Cambroraster resembles a crab. Although in detail, they are very different animals. Much like crabs, we believe the Cambroraster spends its time scouring the seabed, feeding on organisms buried in the mud,” Moysiuk said.
Its large head is covered by a shield-like shell whose shape reminds scientists of a spaceship. Millennium Falcon famous in the movie “Star Wars”. On the front of its body are two large, scraper-like claws, useful for filtering marine mud and prey. Tooth-like plates also appear to surround its round mouth.
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