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Aegirocassis benmoulae [Pharyngula]
Thursday, March 12, 2015 8:33
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Anomalocaris has always been one of my favorite Cambrian animals — it was so weird, and it was also the top predator of the age, making it the equivalent of T. rex. The anomalocarids were also a diverse and successful group, so wouldn’t you know it…it also had a distant filter-feeding cousin in the Ordovician. This is Aegirocassis benmoulae.
Isn’t that beautifully bizarre? The great appendages on the front of the animal have been modified to form a filter-feeding apparatus. It was also a real monster, over 2 meters long.
You want to know more? One of the discoverers, Peter van Roy, has narrated a video in which he explains step-by-step how they reconstructed the organism from the fossils. Very educational!
Source: http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2015/03/12/aegirocassis-benmoulae/
