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The Ediacaran period, which lasted from about 635 to 541 million years ago, marks a fascinating chapter in Earth’s history that is still being deciphered by scientists. Named after the Ediacara Hills in Australia, where some of the oldest fossils of multicellular organisms were found, the period predates the Cambrian explosion of life that gave rise to most of the animal phyla we know today. The Ediacaran biota, as these puzzling organisms are called, lived in a world without predators, complex food webs, or oxygen-rich atmospheres, and left few traces of their biology, physiology, or ecology. However, through diligent fieldwork, lab experiments, and theoretical models, researchers have developed a tentative understanding of how these enigmatic creatures lived, evolved, and interacted in a changing environment.
The Secret Garden of Ediacara
The Ediacaran biota were first discovered in the late 19th century by paleontologists who were puzzled by the strange impressions and casts they found in rocks from Australia, Russia, and other places around the world. Some of the fossils resembled fronds, tubes, or discs, while others had multiple segments, irregular shapes, or no apparent symmetry. These fossils were sometimes preserved in sandstones, limestones, or shales that lacked any skeletal remains of animals, bacteria, or algae. For many years, the Ediacaran biota were regarded as a dead end in the evolution of life, or as failed experiments that were replaced by more advanced forms in the Cambrian period.
However, in the 1950s, Reginald Sprigg, a geologist from South Australia, rediscovered the Ediacara Hills and found a new assemblage of fossils that was even more diverse and complex than the previous ones. Sprigg called these fossils the “Ediacara fauna”, after the native name of the hills, and proposed that they represented a separate episode of evolution that might have occurred in a different world than the present one. Sprigg’s discovery was largely ignored, but it stimulated further investigations that revealed other Ediacara biotas in different parts of the world and triggered debates about the nature, age, and relationships of these organisms. Some scientists suggested that the Ediacara biota were primitive ancestors of animals, while others considered them strange forms of algae or fungi, or even extraterrestrial entities.
In the 1980s and 1990s, new techniques of fossil preparation, imaging, and chemical analysis provided more data on the Ediacaran biota and their environment. The fossils turned out to be more complex than they appeared, and showed evidence of muscle fibers, digestive systems, and reproductive structures. Some fossils had been flattened by tectonic forces, while others had been distorted by bacterial mats or trace fossils from grazing worms or burrowing animals. The rocks containing the fossils also yielded clues about the climate, ocean chemistry, and plate tectonics of the Ediacaran period, which helped to reconstruct the setting in which the biota lived.
Ediacaran Diversity and Evolution
The Ediacara fauna comprises a wide range of organisms that are difficult to classify or interpret, due to their idiosyncratic morphology and lack of close relatives in later periods of Earth’s history. Some of the most characteristic forms include:
- Dickinsonia, a flat, oval or segmented organism that resembled a quilt or a pancake, and is thought to have fed by absorbing organic matter from the sediment or the water.
- Fractofusus, a multi-branched organism that had a central stalk or stem and radiated arms or branches that ended in small, spiral tips, and is likely to have used photosynthesis or chemosynthesis to produce energy.
- Charnia, a fan-shaped or fern-like organism that had a branching base and broad fronds that tapered to narrow tips, and may have been a filter feeder or a symbiont with algae or bacteria.
- Spriggina, a bilaterally symmetrical organism that had a head, a segmented trunk with lateral flaps, and an undivided tail, and is interpreted as a primitive relative of arthropods or worms.
- Kimberella, a bilaterally symmetrical organism that had a domed or flattened shell, a muscular foot or body, and a simple mouth or gut, and is regarded as one of the earliest mollusks or bilaterians.
These organisms varied in size from less than a millimeter to more than a meter, and may have lived in different habitats, such as shallow seas, tidal pools, or soft sediments. Some Ediacaran biotas were dominated by one or a few species, while others had dozens of species that coexisted or competed for resources. The fossils also showed some signs of predation, parasitism, or symbiosis, which suggested that some organisms were evolving ways to avoid or exploit others. However, the overall complexity and diversity of the Ediacaran biota declined towards the end of the period, possibly due to environmental changes or the emergence of new selective pressures from predators, competitors, or pathogens.
Despite its enigmatic and often bizarre aspects, the Ediacaran period helps to fill in some important gaps in the story of life on Earth. The period saw a major shift in the composition of the atmosphere, as oxygen levels rose from less than 1% to about 10%, which enabled the evolution of more efficient modes of respiration and metabolism. The period also marked the transition from a world dominated by single-celled organisms to one with complex multicellular organisms, which opened up new niches and strategies for survival and reproduction. The Ediacaran biota thus provide a glimpse into a time of experimentation, innovation, and exploration in the history of life, before the rise of the animal kingdoms that shaped much of the subsequent diversity and complexity of life.
FAQ
What caused the extinction of the Ediacaran biota?
The causes of the decline and disappearance of the Ediacaran biota are still debated, but several hypotheses have been proposed, based on geological, chemical, and biological evidence. One hypothesis is that the Ediacaran biota were affected by global warming, caused by an increase in volcanic activity or a reduction in the reflectivity of the Earth’s surface due to changes in the carbon cycle. This warming could have led to the expansion of oxygen-poor or toxic zones in the oceans or the atmosphere, or to the loss of habitats and food sources for some organisms. Another hypothesis is that the Ediacaran biota were affected by the rise of predators, either from the Cambrian explosion or from earlier phases of evolution, which could have preyed on or outcompeted some Ediacaran organisms. This hypothesis is supported by some trace fossils that suggest the presence of early arthropods or annelids in the Ediacaran, as well as by some chemical signatures that show a shift in the isotopic composition of fossilized carbonates from the Ediacaran to the Cambrian. A third hypothesis is that the Ediacaran biota were affected by a combination of factors, such as sea level changes, glaciation, tectonic movements, or biological feedback mechanisms, that interacted in complex ways and created different environments with different selective pressures.
What are some of the implications of the Ediacaran period for our understanding of evolution and biology?
The Ediacaran period has several implications for our understanding of how life evolved and how it interacts with its environment. One implication is that the Ediacaran biota challenge some of the assumptions and models that we have about the origin and evolution of multicellularity, such as the “complexity first” hypothesis or the “genetic toolkit” hypothesis. These hypotheses suggest that multicellularity arose from a gradual increase in the number and diversity of genes that control cell differentiation, adhesion, and communication, or from the co-option of developmental pathways that were originally used for other functions. However, the Ediacaran biota suggest that some forms of multicellularity could have emerged independently or convergently, without a strong genetic basis or a hierarchical organization. Another implication is that the Ediacaran period highlights the importance of environmental context and feedback in shaping the course of evolution, and challenges the idea of a linear, predictable path of progress or adaptation. The Ediacaran biota show that life is capable of experimenting with many forms and functions, some of which may not be viable or successful in the long term, and that the outcomes of evolution are contingent on many factors beyond genetic variation and natural selection.
Video
This video from PBS Eons provides a concise and entertaining overview of the Ediacaran period and the Ediacaran biota, including some of the latest research and controversies.
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Ediacaran | Dinopedia | Fandom
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