Reconstructing the reproductive mode of an Ediacaran macro-organism

Mitchell, Emily G. and Kenchington, Charlotte G. and Liu, Alexander G. and Matthews, Jack J. and Butterfield, Nicholas J. (2015) Reconstructing the reproductive mode of an Ediacaran macro-organism. Nature. ISSN 0028-0836 DOI https://doi.org/10.1038/nature14646

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Abstract

Enigmatic macrofossils of late Ediacaran age (580–541 million years ago) provide the oldest known record of diverse complex organisms on Earth, lying between the microbially dominated ecosystems of the Proterozoic and the Cambrian emergence of the modern biosphere1. Among the oldest and most enigmatic of these macrofossils are the Rangeomorpha, a group characterized by modular, self-similar branching and a sessile benthic habit2, 3, 4. Localized occurrences of large in situ fossilized rangeomorph populations allow fundamental aspects of their biology to be resolved using spatial point process techniques5. Here we use such techniques to identify recurrent clustering patterns in the rangeomorph Fractofusus, revealing a complex life history of multigenerational, stolon-like asexual reproduction, interspersed with dispersal by waterborne propagules. Ecologically, such a habit would have allowed both for the rapid colonization of a localized area and for transport to new, previously uncolonized areas. The capacity of Fractofusus to derive adult morphology by two distinct reproductive modes documents the sophistication of its underlying developmental biology.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	2015AREP; IA69;
Subjects:	04 - Palaeobiology
Divisions:	04 - Palaeobiology 08 - Green Open Access
Journal or Publication Title:	Nature
Identification Number:	https://doi.org/10.1038/nature14646
Depositing User:	Sarah Humbert
Date Deposited:	03 Aug 2015 17:32
Last Modified:	25 Aug 2015 14:55
URI:	http://eprints.esc.cam.ac.uk/id/eprint/3429

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