Strange fossil defies grouping
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A strange 525 million-year-old fossil creature is baffling scientists because it does not fit neatly into any existing animal groups.
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The animal, from the early Cambrian Period, might have belonged to a now extinct mollusc-like phylum, academics from America and China say.
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The ... fossil ... had a flattened body and horizontal fins which, researchers think, could have been used to support it as it moved along the sea floor.
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It also had well developed senses, including a pair of eyes on stalks.
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The trouble is the animal, named Vetustodermis planus, did not possess a set of features, or characters, which placed it clearly within any known group. When it was first described in 1979, Vetustodermis was included in the annelid category. Later researchers argued against this classification, saying it was, in fact, either an arthropod or a mollusc. ...
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Jonathan Todd, a palaeontologist from the Natural History Museum, London, UK, is also mystified by the baffling animal. "It is an intriguing beast," he told the BBC News website. "It is another strange thing from the Cambrian. It doesn't look much like an arthropod and I don't find its molluscan affinities particularly convincing." --BBC News
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See? Easy mistake to make.
Joan Rivers 
Vetustodermis planus
3 comments:
Easily confused. They're practically twins.
The Star reports that Vetustodermis planus, who is known for her abrasive humor on the red carpet, has a new line of jewelry coming out this fall.
Don't you guys think you're being a little harsh on the Vetustodermis planus?
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