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| Branchiocaris Temporal range: Mid Cambrian | |
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| Fossil holotype of Branchiocaris pretiosa | |
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| Reconstruction of Branchiocaris pretiosa | |
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| Genus: | Branchiocaris Briggs, 1976 |
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Branchiocaris is an extinct genus of Cambrian bivalved arthropod. [1] The type and best known species, Branchiocaris pretiosa, was described from the Burgess Shale of British Columbia, Canada, in 1929, originally placed in Protocaris , and was placed into its own distinct genus by Briggs in 1976. [2] Several other possible species have been described from Cambrian deposits in China, [3] and it is also possibly known from Cambrian deposits in Utah. [4] Branchiocaris pretiosa is around 80–90 millimetres (3.1–3.5 in) in length, with a highly segmented trunk, consisting of at least 44 ring-like segments, terminating in a forked tail telson. At the front of the animal is a pair of short segmented tapered antennules with at least 20 segments, as well as a pair of claw appendages. It was likely an active swimmer, and used the claw appendages to bring food to the mouth. [5]
The discovery of Tokummia from the Burgess Shale, believed to be a close relative of Branchiocaris, has shed light on the evolutionary placement of Branchiocaris. The authors find both species to be arthropods at a stem position within Mandibulata, as part of the clade Hymenocarina. This is in part based on the clear presence of mandibles, characteristic of all mandibulates. [6]
