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on the bottom of the fossil are less porous and were likely used to keep the animal grounded, and the cells on the outside of the tube differ from those on the inside. The creature is asymmetrical. The fossil found was only about 1.1 millimeters tall and 1.2 millimeters wide, so it can be assumed that the species as a whole would be about the same size since there's no evidence indicating that the fossil found was not a fully grown specimen.
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The specimen found is surprisingly similar to sponges alive today. The cellular structure is almost identical to some modern-day sponges, and the less porous basal side is also more consistent with modern sponges alive today. However, because its combination of traits does not resemble any one of the
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filter feeder that consisted of three tubes, with two smaller side tubes that were likely used to filter water in, and a large, twisted centre tube which was likely used to filter the water out. The cells inside the tubes are flat and porous, as would be expected in a filter feeder. The cells located
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This genus, if it is indeed a sponge, is significant mostly for the time period it was alive in. Until the discovery of this creature, the existence of sponges in the
Ediacaran was only theoretical. The specimen found is nevertheless a problem for theories of early sponge evolution, because all
463:
Cavalier-Smith, T. 2017. Origin of animal multicellularity: precursors, causes, consequences—the choanoflagellate/sponge transition, neurogenesis and the
Cambrian explosion. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 372: 20150476.
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As of yet, only one fossil of the genus has been found, but it was excellently preserved. The specific attributes for this genus have yet to be confirmed until more specimens are found.
417:
Zongjun, Yin, and Zhu Maoyan. 2015. Sponge grade body fossil with cellular resolution dating 60 Myr before the
Cambrian. PNAS, vol. 112, no. 12, 24 Mar. 2015, pp. 1453–1460. PNAS, doi:
345:
ancestor of all animals. So it was expected they would be found in "even stem group sponges", but there's no significant evidence to show that the specimen had any of these cells.
242:. The current fossil record has found this genus in only one location, the Doushantuo Formation in Guizhou, China. It lived in the shallow parts of seas, filter feeding.
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This is the location where the specimen was discovered. This formation consists of the shallow waters of the
Ediacaran and the rocks are made up of six layers of
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to the
Porifera since, unlike sponges, it "lacks evidence for an , the tiny putative intercellular spaces being insufficient evidence for
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and channels penetrating the body wall". Instead he interprets the animal as a "presponge" and groups it with the enigmatic fossil
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is not phylogenetically a member of the sponge line but represents an evolutionary grade out of which ancestral sponges arose.
288:. The fossil was found in a phosphorite rock near the lower layer of the rock formation. The specimen was fossilized through
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Yirka, Bob. 2015. Oldest known sponge found in China. Phys.org, 10 Mar. 2015.
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http://www.fossilworks.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?a=taxonInfo&taxon_no=324165
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was added to indicate that the genus is assessed as a sponge.
366:, a 'non-quilted' subphylum within the oldest animal phylum
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Behrensmeyer, A. K., and A. Turner. 2013. Eocyathispongia.
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have a specific type of cell in their inner wall called
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https://phys.org/news/2015-03-oldest-sponge-china.html
308:, to describe what the creature looks like. The word
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348:Cavalier-Smith (2017) challenges the assignment of
304:meaning dawn, and the Greek word for cup-shaped,
341:, which are believed to be inherited from the
300:The name of the genus combines the Greek root
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234:of sponge-like organisms which lived in the
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370:(contrasting with the 'quilted' subphylum
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238:period about 60 million years before the
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325:, Yin et al. (2015) assign it to the
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130:Artists interpretation of E. qiani.
27:Extinct genus of sponge-like animals
581:Enigmatic prehistoric animal genera
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329:relative to all living sponges.
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316:Relationship and significance
576:Prehistoric animals of China
263:is the only species in the
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571:Prehistoric sponge genera
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136:Scientific classification
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388:List of Ediacaran genera
374:). If this is correct,
321:four extant classes of
333:members of the sponge
261:Eocyathispongia qiania
255:Eocyathispongia qiania
212:Eocyathispongia qiania
538:Paleobiology Database
18:Draft:Eocyathispongia
276:Doushantuo Formation
566:Precambrian sponges
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525:Open Tree of Life
480:Taxon identifiers
267:genus. It was an
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218:Yin Zongjun, 2014
180:Yin Zongjun, 2014
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343:choanoflagellate
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435:Fossilworks
372:Petalonamae
339:choanocytes
335:crown group
282:phosphorite
246:Description
560:Categories
394:References
327:stem group
586:Ediacaran
503:Q87770646
364:Varisarca
362:into the
306:cyathifer
296:Etymology
269:epifaunal
236:Ediacaran
186:Species:
142:Kingdom:
41:602
497:Wikidata
382:See also
368:Vendozoa
323:Porifera
286:dolomite
240:Cambrian
159:Porifera
154:Phylum:
147:Animalia
530:6374737
517:8445484
359:Funisia
310:spongia
167:Genus:
110:↓
543:324165
354:ostia
232:genus
230:is a
512:GBIF
284:and
49:PreꞒ
302:eo-
161:(?)
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426:^
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99:Pg
43:Ma
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210:†
190:†
171:†
104:N
94:K
89:J
84:T
79:P
74:C
69:D
64:S
59:O
54:Ꞓ
20:)
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