Organic membranous skeleton of the Precambrian metazoans from Namibia

Research Article| June 01, 1999 Organic membranous skeleton of the Precambrian metazoans from Namibia Jerzy Dzik Jerzy Dzik 1Instytut Paleobiologii PAN, Twarda 51/55, 00-818 Warszawa, Poland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Geology (1999) 27 (6): 519–522. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1999)027<0519:OMSOTP>2.3.CO;2 Article history first online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share MailTo Twitter LinkedIn Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Jerzy Dzik; Organic membranous skeleton of the Precambrian metazoans from Namibia. Geology 1999;; 27 (6): 519–522. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1999)027<0519:OMSOTP>2.3.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Unlike the celebrated Ediacara fossils, those from the roughly coeval localities of the Kuibis Quarzite of Namibia are preserved not as imprints on the sandstone bedding plane, but three-dimensionally, within the rock matrix. The pattern of deformation and the presence of sand in lower parts of the bodies of Ernietta, the most common and typical of those organisms, indicate that their three-dimensional preservation is a result of a density-controlled sinking of sand-filled organic skeletons within hydrated mud layers. Specimens of Ernietta have preserved various stages of migration across the mud beds. Their wall material, as documented by the mode of deformation, was not only flexible, but also elastic, which makes it unlike chitin. The walls thus seem to be proteinaceous, built probably of a collagenous fabric. The Ernietta skeleton was built of series of parallel chambers, which excludes the possibility that these were external body covers. The chambers apparently represent walls of hydraulic skeleton units, resembling the basement membrane of chaetognaths or the notochord sheath of primitive chordates. Such chambers are widespread among the earliest fossil animals represented by fossils preserved in sandstone. The rise and fall of the Ediacaran faunas thus seem to be partially preservational artifacts. The range of its occurrence is a result of two successive evolutionary events: the origin of an internal hydraulic skeleton enclosed by a strong basement membrane, and the appearance of decomposers with abilities to disintegrate such collagenous sheaths. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.