Articles | Volume 45, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/jm-45-455-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/jm-45-455-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
05 Jun 2026
Research article |
| 05 Jun 2026
| 05 Jun 2026
Cuticular microfragments from the lower Cambrian Yanjiahe Formation, China: insights into ecdysozoan biodiversity at the dawn of animal radiation
Lei Zhang
Institute of Sedimentary Geology and State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation & Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Key Laboratory of Deep-time Geography and Environment Reconstruction and Applications of Ministry of Natural Resources, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Fan Zhai
Institute of Sedimentary Geology and State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation & Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Key Laboratory of Deep-time Geography and Environment Reconstruction and Applications of Ministry of Natural Resources, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Ying Wu
Institute of Sedimentary Geology and State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation & Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Key Laboratory of Deep-time Geography and Environment Reconstruction and Applications of Ministry of Natural Resources, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Shan Chang
College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Hubei Normal University, Huangshi 435002, PR China
Yan Ye
School of Geosciences, Yangtze University, Wuhan 430100, PR China
Department of Geology, Lund University, Solvegatan 12, 22362 Lund, Sweden
Xianguo Lang
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Institute of Sedimentary Geology and State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation & Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Key Laboratory of Deep-time Geography and Environment Reconstruction and Applications of Ministry of Natural Resources, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Yanchun Pang
Institute of Sedimentary Geology and State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation & Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Key Laboratory of Deep-time Geography and Environment Reconstruction and Applications of Ministry of Natural Resources, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Institute of Sedimentary Geology and State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation & Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Key Laboratory of Deep-time Geography and Environment Reconstruction and Applications of Ministry of Natural Resources, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, PR China
Qinglai Feng
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), Wuhan 430074, PR China
State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), Wuhan 430074, PR China
Marie-Béatrice Forel
Centre de Recherche en Paléontologie – Paris, UMR7207, MNHN-CNRS-Sorbonne Université, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, 8 rue Buffon (CP38), 75005 Paris, France
Taniel Danelian
Univ. Lille, CNRS, UMR 8198 – Evo-Eco-Paleo, 59000 Lille, France
Yuanyuan Yong
Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Early Life and Environments and State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics (SKLCD), Department of Geology, Northwest University, Xi'an 710069, PR China
Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, ENS de Lyon, CNRS, Laboratoire de Géologie de Lyon: Terre, Planètes, Environnement (CNRS-UMR 5276), 69622 Villeurbanne, France
Jean Vannier
Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, ENS de Lyon, CNRS, Laboratoire de Géologie de Lyon: Terre, Planètes, Environnement (CNRS-UMR 5276), 69622 Villeurbanne, France
Latest update: 05 Jun 2026
Short summary
New 535-million-year-old fossils from China reveal early animal diversity. Preserved in fine detail, these fossils showcase Ecdysozoa – ancestors of insects and crabs. Twelve forms with spines, plates, and possible limbs were identified, showing rapid body plan evolution after life's first complexity boom. Analysis of fossilized skins reveal complex ecosystems emerging at this time. The findings provide clues about how Earth's most successful animal groups began their evolutionary journey.
New 535-million-year-old fossils from China reveal early animal diversity. Preserved in fine...
