Article
Article
Archaeocyatha
Article By:
Wood, Rachel Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
Last reviewed:October 2019
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.047400
An extinct group of mainly Lower Cambrian marine sponges which, although lacking spicules, possessed an intricate, highly porous skeleton of calcite. It was probably a monophyletic group; that is, all representatives were derived from a single ancestor. The position of the Archaeocyatha within the Porifera is uncertain, but they were probably most closely related to the class Demospongiae. Their fossil record is well known, as archaeocyaths represent the first large skeletal animals to have been associated with reefs; they were widespread in the shallow, warm waters that surrounded the many continents that occupied tropical latitudes during the Cambrian.
The content above is only an excerpt.
About AccessScience
AccessScience provides the most accurate and trustworthy scientific information available.
Recognized as an award-winning gateway to scientific knowledge, AccessScience is an amazing online resource that contains high-quality reference material written specifically for students. Contributors include more than 10,000 highly qualified scientists and 46 Nobel Prize winners.
MORE THAN 8700 articles covering all major scientific disciplines and encompassing the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology and McGraw-Hill Yearbook of Science & Technology
115,000-PLUS definitions from the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms
3000 biographies of notable scientific figures
MORE THAN 19,000 downloadable images and animations illustrating key topics
ENGAGING VIDEOS highlighting the life and work of award-winning scientists
SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY and additional readings to guide students to deeper understanding and research
LINKS TO CITABLE LITERATURE help students expand their knowledge using primary sources of information
