Fossilized spermatozoa preserved in a 50-Myr-old annelid cocoon from Antarctica

The origin and evolution of clitellate annelids-earthworms, leeches and their relatives-is poorly understood, partly because body fossils of these delicate organisms are exceedingly rare. The distinctive egg cases (cocoons) of Clitellata, however, are relatively common in the fossil record, although...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Bomfleur, Benjamin, Mörs, Thomas, Ferraguti, Marco, Reguero, Marcelo Alfredo, McLoughlin, Stephen
Formato: Articulo
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: 2015
Materias:
Ciencias Naturales
Annelida
Antarctica
Clitellata
Fossilization
Spermatozoa
Taphonomy
Acceso en línea:http://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/handle/10915/86204
Aporte de:
SEDICI (UNLP) de Universidad Nacional de La Plata
id I19-R120-10915-86204
record_format dspace
institution Universidad Nacional de La Plata
institution_str I-19
repository_str R-120
collection SEDICI (UNLP)
language Inglés
topic Ciencias Naturales
Annelida
Antarctica
Clitellata
Fossilization
Spermatozoa
Taphonomy
spellingShingle Ciencias Naturales
Annelida
Antarctica
Clitellata
Fossilization
Spermatozoa
Taphonomy
Bomfleur, Benjamin
Mörs, Thomas
Ferraguti, Marco
Reguero, Marcelo Alfredo
McLoughlin, Stephen
Fossilized spermatozoa preserved in a 50-Myr-old annelid cocoon from Antarctica
topic_facet Ciencias Naturales
Annelida
Antarctica
Clitellata
Fossilization
Spermatozoa
Taphonomy
description The origin and evolution of clitellate annelids-earthworms, leeches and their relatives-is poorly understood, partly because body fossils of these delicate organisms are exceedingly rare. The distinctive egg cases (cocoons) of Clitellata, however, are relatively common in the fossil record, although their potential for phylogenetic studies has remained largely unexplored. Here, we report the remarkable discovery of fossilized spermatozoa preserved within the secreted wall layers of a 50-Myr-old clitellate cocoon from Antarctica, representing the oldest fossil animal sperm yet known. Sperm characters are highly informative for the classification of extant Annelida. The Antarctic fossil spermatozoa have several features that point to affinities with the peculiar, leech-like 'crayfish worms' (Branchiobdellida). We anticipate that systematic surveys of cocoon fossils coupled with advances in non-destructive analytical methods may open a new window into the evolution of minute, soft-bodied life forms that are otherwise only rarely observed in the fossil record.
format Articulo
Articulo
author Bomfleur, Benjamin
Mörs, Thomas
Ferraguti, Marco
Reguero, Marcelo Alfredo
McLoughlin, Stephen
author_facet Bomfleur, Benjamin
Mörs, Thomas
Ferraguti, Marco
Reguero, Marcelo Alfredo
McLoughlin, Stephen
author_sort Bomfleur, Benjamin
title Fossilized spermatozoa preserved in a 50-Myr-old annelid cocoon from Antarctica
title_short Fossilized spermatozoa preserved in a 50-Myr-old annelid cocoon from Antarctica
title_full Fossilized spermatozoa preserved in a 50-Myr-old annelid cocoon from Antarctica
title_fullStr Fossilized spermatozoa preserved in a 50-Myr-old annelid cocoon from Antarctica
title_full_unstemmed Fossilized spermatozoa preserved in a 50-Myr-old annelid cocoon from Antarctica
title_sort fossilized spermatozoa preserved in a 50-myr-old annelid cocoon from antarctica
publishDate 2015
url http://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/handle/10915/86204
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AT morsthomas fossilizedspermatozoapreservedina50myroldannelidcocoonfromantarctica
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bdutipo_str Repositorios
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