The discovery of a fossilized brain in the preserved remains of an extinct mega-clawed creature has revealed an ancient nervous system that is remarkably similar to that of modern-day spiders and scorpions, according to a new study. The fossilized Alalcomenaeus is a type of arthropod known as a megacheiran (Greek for large claws) that lived approximately 520 million years ago, during a period known as the Lower Cambrian. The creature was unearthed in the fossil-rich Chengjiang formation in southwest China. Researchers studied the fossilized brain, the earliest known complete nervous system, and found similarities between the extinct creatures nervous system and the nervous systems of several modern arthropods, which suggest they may be ancestrally related. [Photos of Clawed Arthropod & Other Strange Cambrian Creatures] ; livescience/40474-ancient-mega-clawed-creature-fossilized-brain.html
Posted on: Sat, 15 Mar 2014 18:50:04 +0000
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