518 million years old giant worm fossils discovered in Greenland

The well preserved fossil remains of a colossal predatory worm have been discovered in North Greenland. The University of Bristol researchers identified the fossils as belonging to a "new group of animal predators." The team has named the fossilized worms as which means “terror beasts” in Latin.

These ancient worms may have been among the earliest carnivorous organisms to live in the oceans some 518 million years ago. These aquatic giants were over 30 cm long. The team states the fossil findings represent one of the largest swimming animals from the Early Cambrian era. They also had some unusual physical characteristics, such as fins around their body, expanded antennae, and huge jaw structures.

worms are most likely distant cousins of arrow worms or chaetognaths. As per a statement by the researchers, the remains were recovered from the Early Cambrian Sirius Passet fossil locality in North Greenland. “We have previously known that primitive arthropods were the dominant predators during the Cambrian, such as the bizarre looking anomalocaridids,” said Dr Jakob Vinther from the University of Bristol’s Schools of Earth Sciences, a senior author on the study.

“However, is a distant, but close, relative of living arrow worms, or chaetognaths. These are much smaller ocean predators today that feed on tiny zooplankton,” added Vinther, in an Hinting at the stomach residues of this giant worm The remarkably well preserved fossils, including details of digestive systems, muscle anatomy, and nervous systems, offer unprecedented insights into the earliest animal ecosystems.

The research team emphasizes that the findings highlight the intricate nature of ancient ocean ecosystems. It was distinguished by a complex food chain that accommodated numerous tiers of predators. , being giants of their era, likely occupied a prominent position near the apex of the food chain. Surprisingly, the scientists also discovered 's small fossilized digestive system.

Within this digestive system, researchers identified residues of , a prevalent swimming arthropod. “We can see these arthropods were a food source for many other animals,” said Morten Lunde Nielsen, a former PhD student at Bristol, who was part of this study. Nielsen further added: “They are very common at Sirius Passet and had long protective spines, pointing both forwards and backward.

However, they clearly didn’t completely succeed in avoiding that fate, because munched on them in great quantities.” The finding sheds light not just on 's feeding habits, but also on the complicated dynamics of ancient marine life. The study might further shed light on the complexity and organization of prehistoric marine habitats.

The findings were reported in the journal Chaetognaths, with their characteristic grasping spines, are the oldest known pelagic predators, found in the lowest Cambrian (Terreneuvian). Here, we describe a large stem chaetognath, Timorebestia koprii gen. et sp. nov., from the lower Cambrian Sirius Passet Lagerstätte, which exhibits lateral and caudal fins, a distinct head region with long antennae and a jaw apparatus similar to Amiskwia sagittiformis.

Amiskwia has previously been interpreted as a total group chaetognathiferan, as either a stem chaetognath or gnathostomulid. We show that T. koprii shares a ventral ganglion with chaetognaths to the exclusion of other animal groups, firmly placing these fossils on the chaetognath stem. The large size (up to 30 cm) and gut contents in T.

koprii suggest that early chaetognaths occupied a higher trophic position in pelagic food chains than today..