Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera, are a basal animal clade as a sister of the Diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate through them, consisting of jelly-like mesohyl sandwiched between two thin layers of cells.
Aysheaia is an extinct genus of soft-bodied lobopod, known from the middle Cambrian of North America, with an average body length of 1–6 cm.
A sclerite is a hardened body part. In various branches of biology the term is applied to various structures, but not as a rule to vertebrate anatomical features such as bones and teeth. Instead it refers most commonly to the hardened parts of arthropod exoskeletons and the internal spicules of invertebrates such as certain sponges and soft corals. In paleontology, a scleritome is the complete set of sclerites of an organism, often all that is known from fossil invertebrates.
Choia is a genus of extinct demosponge ranging from the Cambrian until the Lower Ordovician periods. Fossils of Choia have been found in the Burgess Shale in British Columbia; the Maotianshan shales of China; the Wheeler Shale in Utah; and the Lower Ordovician Fezouata formation. It was first described in 1920 by Charles Doolittle Walcott.
The Chancelloriids are an extinct family of animal common in sediments from the Early Cambrian to the early Late Cambrian. Many of these fossils consists only of spines and other fragments, and it is not certain that they belong to the same type of organism. Other specimens appear to be more complete and to represent sessile, bag-like organisms with a soft skin armored with star-shaped calcareous sclerites from which radiate sharp spines.
A number of assemblages bear fossil assemblages similar in character to that of the Burgess Shale. While many are also preserved in a similar fashion to the Burgess Shale, the term "Burgess Shale-type fauna" covers assemblages based on taxonomic criteria only.
Capsospongia, formerly known as Corralia or Corralio, is a middle Cambrian sponge genus known from 3 specimens in the Burgess shale. Its type and only species is Capsospongia undulata. It has a narrow base, and consists of bulging rings which get wider further up the sponge, resulting in a conical shape. Its open top was presumably used to expel water that had passed through the sponge cells and been filtered for nutrients.
Crumillospongia is a genus of middle Cambrian sponges known from the Burgess Shale and other localities from the Lower and Middle Cambrian. Its name is derived from the Latin crumilla and spongia ("sponge"), a reflection of its similarity to a small leathery money purse. That is, it has a saclike shape, and its wall has holes of two sizes, with a well-developed internal canal system. 49 specimens of Crumillospongia are known from the Greater Phyllopod bed, where they comprise 0.1% of the community.
Takakkawia is a genus of sponge in the order Protomonaxonida and the family Takakkawiidae. It is known from the Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale that reached around 4 cm in height. Its structure comprises four columns of multi-rayed, organic spicules that align to form flanges. The spicules form blade-like structures, ornamented with concentric rings.
A trab is a structural element within a sponge formed by the fusion of dendroclones.
Spicules are structural elements found in most sponges. Sponge spicules are made of calcium carbonate or silica. Large spicules visible to the naked eye are referred to as megascleres, while smaller, microscopic ones are termed microscleres. The meshing of many spicules serves as the sponge's skeleton and thus it provides structural support and potentially defense against predators. The composition, size, and shape of spicules are major characters in sponge systematics and taxonomy.
Eiffelia is an extinct genus of sponges known from the Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale as well as several Early Cambrian small shelly fossil deposits. It is named after Eiffel Peak, which was itself named after the Eiffel Tower. It was first described in 1920 by Charles Doolittle Walcott. It belongs in the Hexactinellid stem group. 60 specimens of Eiffelia are known from the Greater Phyllopod bed, where they comprise 0.11% of the community.
Falospongia is a genus of sponge made up of radiating fronds, known from the Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale. Its name is derived from the Latin fala ("scaffold") and spongia ("sponge"), referring to the open framework of the skeleton. It superficially resembles Haplistion but is monaxial. 5 specimens of Falospongia are known from the Greater Phyllopod bed, where they comprise under 0.1% of the community.
Fieldospongia is a genus of sea sponge known from the Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale. Just five specimens of Fieldospongia are known from the Greater Phyllopod bed, where they comprise less than 0.1% of the community.
Halichondrites, sometimes mis-spelt Halicondrites is an extinct genus of sea sponge known from the Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale. 7 specimens of Halichondrites are known from the Greater Phyllopod bed, where they comprise < 0.1% of the community.
Leptomitus is a genus of demosponge known from the Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale. Its name is derived from the Greek lept ("slender") and mitos ("thread"), referring to the overall shape of the sponge. 138 specimens of Leptomitus are known from the Greater Phyllopod bed, where they comprise 0.26% of the community.
Protospongia is a genus of Porifera known from the Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale. 102 specimens of Protospongia are known from the Greater Phyllopod bed, where they comprise 0.19% of the community.
Aciculopoda is an extinct prawn which existed in what is now Oklahoma approximately 360 million years ago. It was described in 2010 on the basis of a single fossil from Oklahoma. The single species, Aciculopoda mapesi, was named by Rodney Feldmann and Carrie Schweitzer in honour of Royal Mapes, a paleontologist who discovered the type specimen. It is only the third unambiguous fossil decapod from before the Mesozoic.
Sycon raphanus is a species of marine invertebrate, a calcareous sponge belonging to the family Sycettidae. The name derives from the Greek, "raphanus", meaning radish, and presumably refers to the sponge's shape.
The Heteractinids are a grade of sponges that are paraphyletic with respect to Hexactinellida. Their distinctive trait is their six-pronged (snowflake-like) spicules, whose symmetry historically suggested a relationship with the triradial Calcarean sponges. Nevertheless, they actually represent a polyphyletic grade, from which the hexactinellids arose.
