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Informationen zum Autor Hou Xian-guang is former Director, Key Laboratory for Palaeobiology, Yunnan University, Kunming David J. Siveter is Professor Emeritus of Paleontology, University of Leicester Derek J. Siveter is Professor Emeritus of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford Richard J. Aldridge was Professor Emeritus and F.W. Bennett Professor of Geology, University of Leicester Cong Pei-yun is Professor of Paleobiology, Yunnan University, Kunming Sarah E. Gabbott is Professor of Paleobiology, University of Leicester Ma Xiao-ya is Professor of Paleobiology, Yunnan University, Kunming, and the Natural History Museum, London Mark A. Purnell is Professor of Paleobiology, University of Leicester Mark Williams is Professor of Paleobiology, University of Leicester Klappentext The celebrated lower Cambrian Chengjiang biota of Yunnan Province, China, represents one of the most significant ever paleontological discoveries. Deposits of ancient mudstone, about 520 million years old, have yielded a spectacular variety of exquisitely preserved fossils that record the early diversification of animal life. Since the discovery of the first specimens in 1984, many thousands of fossils have been collected, exceptionally preserving not just the shells and carapaces of the animals, but also their soft tissues in fine detail. This special preservation has produced fossils of rare beauty; they are also of outstanding scientific importance as sources of evidence about the origins of animal groups that have sustained global biodiversity to the present day. Much of the scientific documentation of the Chengjiang biota is in Chinese, and the first edition of this book was the first in English to provide fossil enthusiasts with a comprehensive overview of the fauna. The second edition has been fully updated and includes a new chapter on other exceptionally preserved fossils of Cambrian age, exciting new fossil finds from Chengjiang, and a phylogenetic framework for the biota. Displaying some 250 figures of marvelous specimens, this book presents to professional and amateur paleontologists, and all those fascinated by evolutionary biology, the aesthetic and scientific quality of the Chengjiang fossils. Zusammenfassung The celebrated lower Cambrian Chengjiang biota of Yunnan Province! China! represents one of the most significant ever paleontological discoveries. Deposits of ancient mudstone! about 520 million years old! have yielded a spectacular variety of exquisitely preserved fossils that record the early diversification of animal life. Inhaltsverzeichnis Foreword ix Preface xi Part One Geological and Evolutionary Setting of the Biota 1 1 Geological time and the evolution of early life on Earth 3 2 The evolutionary significance of the Chengjiang biota 7 3 The discovery and study of the Chengjiang Lagerstätte 12 4 The distribution and geological setting of the Chengjiang Lagerstätte 20 5 The taphonomy and preservation of the Chengjiang fossils 26 6 The paleoecology of the Chengjiang biota 30 7 Cambrian Lagerstätten 35s Part Two Chengjiang Fossils 39 8 Algae 40 Fuxianospira gyrata Chen & Zhou, 1997 40 Megaspirellus houi Chen & Erdtmann, 1991 42 Sinocylindra yunnanensis Chen & Erdtmann, 1991 44 Yuknessia sp. of Chen & Erdtmann, 1991 46 9 Ctenophora 48 Galeactena hemispherica Ou et al., 2015 49 Maotianoascus octonarius Chen & Zhou, 1997 50 Batofasciculus ramificans Hou et al., 1999 52 Yunnanoascus haikouensis Hu et al., 2007 54 10 Porifera 56 Paradiagoniella xiaolantianensis Chen et al., 2014 56 Triticispongia diagon...
