Fossil Gallery
Scolecofurca rara
A worm with a fork-like front end
Scolecofurca rara (GSC 45331) – Holotype (part and counterpart). Only known specimen of the species showing the pair tentacles in direct light (anterior to the right). Specimen length = 65 mm. Specimen wet – direct light (top), dry – polarized light (middle and bottom). Raymond Quarry.
© Geological Survey of Canada. Photos: Jean-Bernard Caron
Photo Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Priapulida
Class:
Unranked clade (stem group priapulids)
Affinity:
Scolecofurca belongs to the priapulid worm stem group (Harvey et al., 2010; Wills, 1998).
Species name:
Scolecofurca rara
Described by:
Conway Morris
Description date:
1977
Etymology:
Scolecofurca – from the Greek skolex, meaning “worm,” and the Latin furca, “fork,” in reference to the fork-like anterior of this worm.
rara – from the Latin rarus, “infrequent,” in reference to the rarity of the species.
Type Specimens:
Holotype – GSC 45331 in the Geological Survey of Canada, Ottawa, Canada.
Other species:
Burgess Shale and vicinity: none.
Other deposits: none.
Period:
Middle Cambrian, Bathyuriscus-Elrathina Zone (approximately 505 million years ago).
Brief history of research:
This worm was described by Conway Morris in 1977 as a possible primitive priapulid. Later analyses showed that S. rara belongs to the priapulid stem group (Harvey et al., 2010; Wills, 1998).
Morphology:
Scolecofurca is known from a single incomplete specimen, which is estimated to have reached nine centimeters in total length. Like other priapulids, the body is divided into a proboscis and a trunk. The proboscis is fringed with small extensions called papillae, and tipped with a pair of conspicuous tentacles giving the appearance of a two-pronged fork. The trunk is annulated and the gut appears to be represented by a simple tube. Contrary to all the other species of priapulids from the Burgess Shale, this form does not have spines or hooks on the proboscis or body.
Abundance:
This species is known from a single specimen.
Maximum size:
90 mm
Life habits:
Endobenthic, mobile
Feeding strategies:
Unknown
Ecological Interpretations:
The general body-shape and presence of a proboscis suggests Scolecofurca was a burrower. The tentacles might have had a sensory function rather than being used for prey manipulation, but the mode of feeding of this species is unknown.
Bibliography:
CONWAY MORRIS, S. 1977. Fossil priapulid worms. Special Papers in Palaeontology, 20: 1-95.
HARVEY, T. H. P., X. DONG AND P. C. J. DONOGHUE. 2010. Are palaeoscolecids ancestral ecdysozoans? Evolution & Development, 12(2): 177-200.
WILLS, M. A. 1998. Cambrian and Recent disparity: the picture from priapulids. Paleobiology, 24(2): 177-199.
Other links:
None
