A new entoproct-like organism from the Burgess Shale of British Columbia

20 4 Sun, 01/01/1978 - 12:00 January 833 845

MORRIS, S. 1978. A new entoproct-like organism from the Burgess Shale of British Columbia. Palaeontology, 20, 4, 833–845.

S. Conway Morris Dinomischus isolatus gen. et sp. nov. is described from the Burgess Shale (Middle Cambrian). A calyx, supported by a long slender stem, bears distally a circlet of elongate bracts which may have been used in filter feeding. Within the calyx a recurved gut with enlarged stomach is supported in a spacious body cavity by suspensory fibres. A sessile mode of life comparable to that of the modern pennatulacean Umbellula (Cnidaria) is proposed. Certain similarities with other stalked animals, especially the Entoprocta, exist. The actual affinities of D. isolatus remain, however, uncertain. The Palaeontological Association (Free Access)