| RRC ID |
89542
|
| Author |
Sandy Y. Cui, Nicole S. Mizrahi, Shaily Rahman, Scott A. Nichols, Talia S. Karim, Carl Simpson
|
| Title |
The fossil record of siliceous sponge spicules can be taken at face value
|
| Journal |
bioRxiv
|
| Abstract |
Modern sponges (Porifera) diverged by the Cryogenian, but their silicious skeletons do not appear in the fossil record until one hundred million years later, a time-span termed the “spicule gap” and thought to be a taphonomic artifact even though sponges convergently evolved siliceous spicules. Due to sponges’ position in animal phylogeny and important role in regulating ocean chemistry, the timing of their biomineralization has major implications for the changing tempo and mode of Earth systems as animals radiate. In a comprehensive dataset of Ediacaran and Cambrian sponges, we find that spicules are readily preserved in Cambrian environments more extreme than those of the Ediacaran. Given the convergent evolution of siliceous spicules, we find that the fossil record accurately represents when spicules first evolved in the different sponge lineages.
|
| Published |
2026-1-30
|
| DOI |
10.64898/2026.01.27.702024
|
| Resource |
| GBIF |
Yasuhiro Fudouji Specimens of Saga Prefectural Space and Science Museum
Invertebrate fossil collection of National Museum of Nature and Science
Fossil specimens of Tochigi Prefectural Museum
Fossil Specimens and Geological Specimens of The Cattle Museum |
