List of Xiaoshiba Biota species

This is a list of the fossils found within the Xiaoshiba Biota.

The Xiaoshiba Biota is a lagerstätte from south China, belonging to the Hongjingshao Formation. It dates to roughly 514 mya, near the end of Cambrian Stage 3. This interval lies between the more famous Maotianshan Shales and Burgess Shale in age.

Ecdysozoa

Scalidophora

Genus	Species	Material	Notes	Images
Paraselkirkia	P. sinica [1]	Around 200 specimens	Similar to Selkirkia in appearance, likely generalistic in diet [2]	Reconstruction of Paraselkirkia
Mafangscolex	M cf. yunnanensis	13 specimens [3]	Palaeoscolecid

Panarthropoda

Lobopodia

Genus	Species	Material	Notes	Images
Collinsium	C. ciliosum	Three mostly complete specimens [4]	Related to Acinocricus from North America
Omnidens	O. amplus (“Omnidens qiongqii” is likely synonymous [5] )	Hundreds of oral cones, several frontal appendages [6]	Largest animal of the Cambrian, related to Pambdelurion from Greenland	A partial mouth apparatus of Omnidens, alongside a small trilobite

Arthropoda

Genus	Species	Material	Notes	Images
Alacaris	A. mirabilis	Around 40 specimens	Fuxianhuiid, one specimen preserved while moulting [7]	Reconstruction of Alacaris
Chengjiangocaris	C. kunmingensis [8]	Numerous specimens	Fuxianhuiid	Reconstruction of Chengjiangocaris
Fuxianhuia	F. xiaoshibaensis [8]	Numerous specimens	Fuxianhuiid	Reconstruction of Fuxianhuia
Lihuacaris	L. ferox	Six specimens	Indeterminate arthropod, likely a fuxianhuiid [9]

Hymenocarina

Genus	Species	Material	Notes	Images
Clypecaris	C. serrata	Multiple complete specimens	First pair of appendages specialised for predation, carapace serrated [10]	Reconstructions of Clypecaris serrata
Pectocaris	P. paraspatiosa P. eurypetala P. spatiosa P. inopinata	12 specimens of P. paraspatiosa, 19 specimens of P. spatiosa, 2 specimens of P. eurypetala and one specimen of P. inopinata [11]	All species of Pectocaris present	Pectocaris species. Left to right, top to bottom: P. spatiosa, P. erypetala, P. inopinata, P. paraspatiosa
Jugatacaris ?	J. sp?	One partial specimen	Unclear whether it belongs to the genus due to its fragmentary nature [11]	Reconstruction of Jugatacaris

Artiopoda

Genus	Species	Material	Notes	Images
Sidneyia	S. minor	Two specimens	Smaller tail fluke than other species [12]	Reconstruction of Sidneyia minor
Zhangshania	Z. typica	Numerous specimens of all ages	Synonymous with “Parazhangshania” [13]
Zhiwenia	Z. coronata	Four specimens	Basal artiopod, related to Acanthomeridion [14]

Spiralia

Annelida

Genus	Species	Material	Notes	Images
Xiaoshibachaeta	X. biodiversa	One mostly complete fossil	Earliest fossil of a burrowing annelid known [15]

Mollusca

Genus	Species	Material	Notes	Images
Wiwaxia	W. foliosa	Six specimens	Lacks spines, unlike W. corrugata [16]	Model of a juvenile Wiwaxia corrugata, somewhat similar to Wiwaxia foliosa in its lack of spines

Deuterostomia

Genus	Species	Material	Notes	Images

Green and red algae

Genus [17]	Species	Material	Notes	Images
Doulia	D. rara	Two specimens
Eolaminaria	E. simigladiola	Three specimens
Rugophyca	R. longa	Eight specimens
Singulariphyca	S. ramosa	Thirty-five specimens

Miscellaneous/Enigmatic

Genus	Species	Material	Notes	Images
Protomelission ?	P. sp.?	Twelve specimens	Assignment to the genus dubious due to differing preservation methods [18]	Microfossil of Protomelission from Wirrealpa. Reproduced from Zhang et al., 2021

See also

• List of Guanshan Biota species
• Paleobiota of the Maotianshan Shales

References

1. Yang, Xiao-yu; Vannier, Jean; Yang, Jie; Wang, Deng; Zhang, Xi-guang (November 2021). "Priapulid worms from the Cambrian of China shed light on reproduction in early animals". Geoscience Frontiers. 12 (6): 101234. Bibcode:2021GeoFr..1201234Y. doi:10.1016/j.gsf.2021.101234.
2. Tian, Lan; Jie, Yang; Jin-Bo, Hou; Xi-Guang, Zhang (January 2015). "The feeding behaviour of the Cambrian tubiculous priapulid Selkirkia". Lethaia. 48 (1): 125–132. Bibcode:2015Letha..48..125T. doi:10.1111/let.12093.
3. Yang, Jie; Smith, Martin R; Zhang, Xi-guang; Yang, Xiao-yu (December 2020). "Introvert and pharynx of Mafangscolex , a Cambrian palaeoscolecid" (PDF). Geological Magazine. 157 (12): 2044–2050. Bibcode:2020GeoM..157.2044Y. doi:10.1017/S0016756820000308.
4. Yang, Jie; Ortega-Hernández, Javier; Gerber, Sylvain; Butterfield, Nicholas J.; Hou, Jin-bo; Lan, Tian; Zhang, Xi-guang (14 July 2015). "A superarmored lobopodian from the Cambrian of China and early disparity in the evolution of Onychophora". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 112 (28): 8678–8683. Bibcode:2015PNAS..112.8678Y. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1505596112 . PMC   4507230 . PMID   26124122.
5. Christian R. A., McCall (2025). "Comment on: Omnidens appendages and the origin of radiodont mouthparts" . Papers in Palaeontology. 11 (3): e70015. doi:10.1002/spp2.70015. ISSN   2056-2802.
6. Li, Wei; Yang, Jie; Yang, Xiaoyu; Dhungana, Alavya; Wang, Yu; Zhang, Xiguang; Smith, Martin R. (November 2024). "Omnidens appendages and the origin of radiodont mouthparts". Papers in Palaeontology. 10 (6). Bibcode:2024PPal...10E1600L. doi:10.1002/spp2.1600.
7. Yang, Jie; Ortega-Hernández, Javier; Drage, Harriet B.; Du, Kun-sheng; Zhang, Xi-guang (5 April 2019). "Ecdysis in a stem-group euarthropod from the early Cambrian of China". Scientific Reports. 9 (1): 5709. Bibcode:2019NatSR...9.5709Y. doi:10.1038/s41598-019-41911-w. PMC   6450865 . PMID   30952888.
8. Yang, Jie; Ortega-Hernández, Javier; Butterfield, Nicholas J.; Zhang, Xi-guang (February 2013). "Specialized appendages in fuxianhuiids and the head organization of early euarthropods". Nature. 494 (7438): 468–471. Bibcode:2013Natur.494..468Y. doi:10.1038/nature11874. PMID   23446418.
9. Jiao, De-guang; Pates, Stephen; Lerosey-Aubril, Rudy; Ortega-Hernández, Javier; Yang, Jie; Lan, Tian; Zhang, Xi-guang (November 2021). "New multipodomerous appendages of stem-group euarthropods from the Cambrian (Stage 4) Guanshan Konservat-Lagerstätte". Royal Society Open Science. 8 (11). Bibcode:2021RSOS....811134J. doi:10.1098/rsos.211134. PMC   8580442 . PMID   34804574.
10. Yang, Jie; Ortega-Hernández, Javier; Lan, Tian; Hou, Jin-bo; Zhang, Xi-guang (10 June 2016). "A predatory bivalved euarthropod from the Cambrian (Stage 3) Xiaoshiba Lagerstätte, South China". Scientific Reports. 6 (1): 27709. Bibcode:2016NatSR...627709Y. doi:10.1038/srep27709. PMC   4901283 . PMID   27283406.
11. Jin, Changfei; Chen, Hong; Mai, Huijuan; Hou, Xianguang; Yang, Xianfeng; Zhai, Dayou (15 April 2024). "Discovery of diverse Pectocaris species at the Cambrian series 2 Hongjingshao formation Xiazhuang section (Kunming, SW China) and its ecological, taphonomic, and biostratigraphic implications". PeerJ. 12: e17230. doi: 10.7717/peerj.17230 . PMC   11025544 . PMID   38638159.
12. Du, Kunsheng; Bruton, David L.; Yang, Jie; Zhang, Xiguang (March 2023). "An early Cambrian Sidneyia (Arthropoda) resolves the century-long debate of its head organization". Science China Earth Sciences. 66 (3): 521–527. Bibcode:2023ScChD..66..521D. doi:10.1007/s11430-022-1019-8.
13. Hou, Jin-bo; Hughes, Nigel C.; Yang, Jie; Lan, Tian; Zhang, Xi-guang; Dominguez, Chrysalyn (January 2017). "Ontogeny of the articulated yiliangellinine trilobite Zhangshania typica from the lower Cambrian (Series 2, Stage 3) of southern China". Journal of Paleontology. 91 (1): 86–99. Bibcode:2017JPal...91...86H. doi:10.1017/jpa.2016.118.
14. Du, Kun-sheng; Ortega-Hernández, Javier; Yang, Jie; Zhang, Xi-guang (June 2019). "A soft-bodied euarthropod from the early Cambrian Xiaoshiba Lagerstätte of China supports a new clade of basal artiopodans with dorsal ecdysial sutures". Cladistics. 35 (3): 269–281. doi:10.1111/cla.12344. PMID   34622993.
15. Yang, Xiaoyu; Aguado, M. Teresa; Yang, Jie; Bleidorn, Christoph (October 2024). "A burrowing annelid from the early Cambrian". Biology Letters. 20 (10). doi:10.1098/rsbl.2024.0357. PMC   11461068 . PMID   39378985.
16. Yang, Jie; Smith, Martin R.; Lan, Tian; Hou, Jin-bo; Zhang, Xi-guang (10 April 2014). "Articulated Wiwaxia from the Cambrian Stage 3 Xiaoshiba Lagerstätte". Scientific Reports. 4 (1): 4643. Bibcode:2014NatSR...4.4643Y. doi:10.1038/srep04643. PMC   3982170 . PMID   24717918.
17. Lan, Tian; Yang, Jie; Zhang, Xi-guang; Hou, Jin-bo (2018-06-15). "A new macroalgal assemblage from the Xiaoshiba Biota (Cambrian Series 2, Stage 3) of southern China" . Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 499: 35–44. Bibcode:2018PPP...499...35L. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2018.02.029. ISSN   0031-0182.
18. Yang, Jie; Lan, Tian; Zhang, Xi-guang; Smith, Martin R. (16 March 2023). "Protomelission is an early dasyclad alga and not a Cambrian bryozoan". Nature. 615 (7952): 468–471. Bibcode:2023Natur.615..468Y. doi:10.1038/s41586-023-05775-5. PMID   36890226.