Eocyathispongia

Eocyathispongia is a genus of sponge-like organisms which lived in the Ediacaran period about 60 million years before the Cambrian.[1] The current fossil record has found this genus in only one location, the Doushantuo Formation in Guizhou, China.[2] It lived in the shallow parts of seas, filter feeding.

Eocyathispongia
Temporal range: 635 Ma to 542 Ma
Artists interpretation of E. qiani.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Porifera
Genus:
Eocyathispongia

(Yin Zongjun, 2014)
Species:
E. qiania
Bionomial name

Eocyathispongia qiania

Description

As of yet, only one fossil of the genus has been found, but it was excellently preserved. The specific attributes for this genus have yet to be confirmed until more specimens are found.

Eocyathispongia qiania

Eocyathispongia qiania is the only species in the Eocyathispongia genus. It was an epifaunal filter feeder that consisted of three tubes, with two smaller side tubes that were likely used to filtered in water, and a large, twisted centre tube which was likely used to filter the water out. The cells inside the tubes are flat and porous, as would be expected in a filter feeder. The cells located on the bottom of the fossil are less porous and were likely used to keep the animal grounded, and the calls on the outside of the tube differ from those on the inside. The creature is asymmetrical. The fossil found was only about 1.1 millimeters tall and 1.2 millimeters wide,[1] so it can be assumed that the species as a whole would be about the same size since there's no evidence indicating that the fossil found was not a fully grown specimen.

Modern resemblance

The specimen found is surprisingly similar to sponges alive today. The cellular structure is almost identical to some modern-day sponges, and the less porous basal side is also more consistent with modern sponges alive today. However, it does not resemble any modern species of sponge, so it is possibly a crown group of porifera.[1]

Etymology

The name of the genus itself consists of a combination of the Greek word for dawn, eo, and the greek word for cup-shaped, cyathifer, to describe what the creature looks like. The word “spongia” was added to the end in order to indicate that genus is that of a sponge.[1]

Significance

This genus is significant mostly for the time period it was alive is in and because it was a sponge. Until the discovery of this creature, the existence of sponges like this one in the Ediacaran was only theoretical.[3] The specimen found also somewhat disproves a theory about early sponges because it was believed that the sponge crown-group would have had a specific type of cell in their inner wall called choanocytes, but there's no significant evidence to show that the specimen had any of these cells.

Doushantuo Formation

This is the location where the specimen was discovered. This formation consists of the shallow waters of the Ediacaran and the rocks are made up of six layers of [[phosphorite## and dolomite. The fossil was found in a phosphorite rock near the lower layer of the rock formation.[1] The specimen was fossilized through lithification.[2]

See also

References
  1. [Zongjun, Yin, and Zhu Maoyan. “ Sponge Grade Body Fossil with Cellular Resolution Dating 60 Myr before the Cambrian.” PNAS, vol. 112, no. 12, 24 Mar. 2015, pp. 1453–1460. PNAS, doi:https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1414577112.]
  2. [Behrensmeyer, A. K., and A. Turner. 2013.“Eocyathispongia.” Fossilworks, http://www.fossilworks.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?a=taxonInfo&taxon_no=324165.]
  3. [Yirka, Bob. “Oldest Known Sponge Found in China.” Phys.org, Phys.org, 10 Mar. 2015, https://phys.org/news/2015-03-oldest-sponge-china.html.]

[Category:Ediacaran life]]

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