Southeast Asia Information Port News (www.dnyxxg.com) – A recent paleontology paper published in the international academic journal *Nature* reports that Chinese scientists have discovered 32 new tubular micro-shell fossils in Early Cambrian strata dating back approximately 520 million years in southern Shaanxi Province, potentially representing the earliest known cephalopods.
These micro-fossils, only a few millimeters in length, possess a tubular structure that helps maintain buoyancy, a common feature of shelled cephalopods. This fossil discovery provides new insights into the evolutionary history of these mollusks, including squid, octopuses, and nautiluses.
The paper explains that shelled cephalopods are characterized by chambered shells filled with gas or liquid; inside the shell is a thin tube called a siphuncle, which expels water from the shell, thus regulating buoyancy. Current fossil records suggest that the earliest cephalopods evolved during the Cambrian Explosion, approximately 560 to 520 million years ago, although the origins of their ancestors remain controversial.
In this study, Professor Guo Junfeng of Chang'an University, along with colleagues and collaborators, analyzed 32 tubular microshell fossils (1.5 mm to 4.4 mm in length) from Early Cambrian strata (approximately 520 million years ago) in southern Shaanxi Province. They discovered a continuous tubular structure within the multi-chambered shells, which they interpreted as a body tube.
The research team classified these fossils into a new genus called *Eoceras*, suggesting they likely belong to a very primitive group of cephalopods. More specifically, *Eoceras* represents an evolutionary transition between earlier chambered shells and more recent cephalopods with sophisticated buoyancy control systems.
Professor Guo pointed out that these fossils currently lack some characteristics of later cephalopods, and their soft-body anatomy remains unclear. Therefore, future discoveries and further research on similar Cambrian fossils may help elucidate the earliest evolutionary history of cephalopods and reveal the origin of their unique shell structures. (End)
