Yarnemia ascidiformis is a fossil tentatively classified as a tunicate. While Y. ascidiformis looks similar to tunicates, the oldest unequivocal tunicate, Shankouclava[1] dates to the Cambrian period, while Y. ascidiformis is Ediacaran in age.[2][3]

Yarnemia
Temporal range: 557 Ma
reconstruction as a tunicate-like animal
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Tunicata (?)
Genus: Yarnemia
Nesov in Chistyakov et al., 1984
Species:
Y. ascidiformis
Binomial name
Yarnemia ascidiformis
Nesov in Chistyakov et al., 1984

Etymology edit

The generic name Yarnemia comes from the village of Yarnema near which the first specimens were found. The specific epithet, ascidiformis, refers to the likeness to ascidians.

See also edit

Other Ediacaran biota tentatively identified as tunicates include

References edit

  1. ^ Chen, Jun-Yuan, et al. "The first tunicate from the Early Cambrian of South China." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 100.14 (2003): 8314-8318.
  2. ^ University of California Museum of Paleontology Berkeley
  3. ^ Chistyakov, V.G.; Kalmykova, N.A.; Nesov, L.A. & Suslov, G.A. (1984). "О наличии вендских отложений в среднем течении р. Онеги и возможном существовании оболочечников (Tunicata: Chordata) в докембрии" [On the Presence of Vendian Deposits in the Middle Course of the Onega River and Presumable Existence of Tunica (Tunicata: Chordata) in Precambrian] (PDF). Vest. Leningrad. Gos. Univ. (LGU) (in Russian). 6: 11–19. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 7, 2007.