About the Book
Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 41. Chapters: Cloudinid, Arkarua, Pteridinium, Xenusion, Ediacara biota, Small shelly fauna, Kimberella, Dickinsonia, Charnia, Spriggina, Yorgia, Namacalathus, Aspidella, Eoandromeda, Onega, Isomer, List of Ediacaran genera, Ovatoscutum, Ediacaria, Vendiamorpha, Ernietta, Proarticulata, Parvancorina, Ausia, Hiemalora, Palaeophragmodictya, Cyclomedusa, Bomakellia, Swartpuntia, Funisia, Thectardis, Marywadea, Sinotubulites, Rangea, Fractofusus, Rangeomorph, Charniodiscus, Horodyskia, Thaumaptilon, Tamga, Nemiana, Erniettomorph, Nimbia, Bradgatia, Inaria, Windermeria, Mawsonites, Vaveliksia, Namapoikia, Large ornamented Ediacaran microfossil, Lantian formation, Albumares brunsae, Anfesta stankovskii, Chondroplon, Saarina, Praecambridium, Khatyspytia, Pectinifrons, Skania, Dickinsoniidae, Planolites, Yarnemia, Somatohelix, Vendoconularia, Ivesheadiomorphs, Gremiphyca, Thallophycoides, Arachaeosphaeroides, Kakabekia, Eobacterium. Excerpt: The Ediacara (pronounced, formerly Vendian) biota consisted of enigmatic tubular and frond-shaped, mostly sessile organisms which lived during the Ediacaran Period (ca. 635-542 Ma). Trace fossils of these organisms have been found worldwide, and represent the earliest known complex multicellular organisms. The Ediacara biota first appeared as the Earth thawed from the Cryogenian period's extensive glaciation, and largely disappeared contemporaneous with the rapid appearance of biodiversity known as the Cambrian explosion. Most currently existing body-plans of animals first appeared only in the fossil record of the Cambrian rather than the Ediacaran. For macroorganisms, the Cambrian biota completely replaced the organisms that populated the Ediacaran fossil record. The organisms of the Ediacaran Period first appeared around and flourished until the cusp of the Cambrian when the characteristic communi...
