Sidneyia

Sid-ney-ah.
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Cassidy Wood

Paleoentomologist

Cassidy Wood uncovers the tiny yet significant world of prehistoric insects. Her research on amber-preserved specimens has revealed intricate details about ancient ecosystems.

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Name

Sidneyia ‭(‬named after Sidney Wallcott‭).

Phonetic

Sid-ney-ah.

Named By

Charles Walcott‭ ‬-‭ ‬1911.

Classification

Arthropoda,‭ ‬Limulavida.

Diet

Carnivore.

Species

S.‭ ‬inexpectans‭

Size

Largest specimens up to‭ ‬12.7‭ ‬centimetres long.

Known locations

Canada,‭ ‬British Columbia‭ ‬-‭ ‬Burgess Shale.,‭ ‬Possibly also the USA.

Time Period

Cambrian.

Fossil representation

Well over‭ ‬100‭ ‬individuals.

In Depth

       Sidneyia is thought to have been a carnivore of other bottom dwelling marine organisms,‭ ‬scouring the ocean floor and sensing them out with its antennae.‭ ‬So far Sidneyia is known from well over a hundred specimens,‭ ‬with many more likely to yet be found.‭ ‬Individuals ran from about five centimetres to just under thirteen centimetres on length.‭ ‬Sidneyia was named by Charles Walcott in‭ ‬1911,‭ ‬and he named it after his son Sidney who actually discovered the first specimens.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬Taphonomy of the Greater Phyllopod Bed community,‭ ‬Burgess Shale.‭ ‬-‭ ‬PALAIOS‭ ‬21‭ (‬5‭) ‬-Jean-Bernard Caron‭ & ‬Donald A.‭ ‬Jackson‭ ‬-‭ ‬2006. – New occurrence of the Burgess Shale arthropod Sidneyia in the Early Cambrian Chengjiang Lagerst�tte (South China), and revision of the arthropod Urokodia. – Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology. 26: 1–8. – Xingliang Zhang, Jian Han & Degan Shu – 2008. – Reconstructing the diet of a 505-million-year-old arthropod: Sidneyia inexpectans from the Burgess Shale fauna. – Arthropod Structure & Development. 45 (2): 200–220. – Axelle Zaca�, Jean Vannier & Rudy Lerosey-Aubril – 2016. – The gnathobasic spine microstructure of recent and Silurian chelicerates and the Cambrian artiopodan Sidneyia : Functional and evolutionary implications. – Arthropod Structure & Development. 47 (1): 12–24. – Russell D. C. Bicknell, John R. Paterson, Jean-Bernard Caron & Christian B Skovsted – 2017.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT