Biological, preservational and evolutionary aspects of macro- and meiofaunal biota of the Yangtze Platform at the Precambrian-Cambrian transition

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Opposing the "Cambrian explosion", the project aims to study the radiation of Metazoa by the analysis of the macrofauna (Maotianshan-Shalefauna) of shallow-water facies from early Cambrian Chengjiang Lagerstätten. We will focus on selected components, such as benthic supposed gastroneuralian predators among Nemathelminthes and Arthropoda and on comparative-morphological and evolutionary aspects and on material from fresh lithologies of similar age and origin, in order to get additional (e.g. organic-cuticular) information. In addition we plan the exploration of meiofaunal fossils ("Orsten"-type faunas) from sedimentary rocks of carbonate and phosphorite facies and of contemporary or older age than the known Chinese lagerstätten. Such ecological and facial settings are present on the Yangtze Platform and are known to continue form the Late Precambrian into the Cambrian in predominantly black shale and phosphorite lithologies. These investigations are expected to yield "primary food chain members" as important, but neglected components of early benthic biota, providing hitherto unknown information on the early evolution of metazoans in shallow-water habitats (carbonate and phosphate mud facies).