Addressing the Chengjiang conundrum: A palaeoecological view on the rarity of hurdiid radiodonts in this most diverse early Cambrian Lagerstätte

Abstract

Over one hundred arthropod fossil species have been described from the famous Chengjiang Lagerstätte (South China, Cambrian Stage 3, ca. 518 Ma) including a diverse assemblage of radiodonts–a group containing Anomalocaris and its relatives. These iconic stem-group euarthropods include some of the largest animals of the time, and some are known from hundreds of specimens. A longstanding conundrum has been the rarity or absence of hurdiids from Cambrian Series 2 Lagerstätten like Chengjiang. This is because radiodonts are generally common in such deposits and the oldest radiodont ever discovered is a hurdiid. Furthermore, this family displays the widest geographic and temporal ranges of all radiodont families, and the highest diversity. Here we document the first hurdiid frontal appendages from Chengjiang, which display unique features within the family and may provide insights for understanding the character evolution of hurdiid appendages. The palaeoenvironmental distribution of hurdiids suggests that the rarity of hurdiids in Chengjiang may be due to a preference for deeper water environments, and the later success of this family from the Wuliuan onwards may relate to their ability to tolerate cooler water temperatures than other radiodont families. The palaeogeographical, palaeoenvironmental, and stratigraphical patterns observed in hurdiids maybe caused in part by the limited distributions of Konservat-Lagerstätten in the Cambrian as well.