RT Journal Article
T1 Synchronized moulting behaviour in trilobites from the Cambrian Series 2 of South China
A1 Corrales, Alejandro
A1 Esteve Serrano, Jorge Vicente
A1 YuanLong, Zhao
A1 XingLian, Yang
AB The study of moulting behaviour in the fossil record is relatively well known in arthropods and this is especially true for trilobites. Nevertheless, while studies focusing on the style of moulting in social and semi-social groups of modern animals (e.g. arthropods) are common, very few works investigate moulting adaptations in deep time. Here we report a trilobite assemblage from the Cambrian Series 2 “Tsinghsutung” Formation of South China. Around 850 specimens were used for this study from three diferent levels across one section near Balang (SE Guizhou Province, South China). These levels preserve numerous trilobite clusters in some cases containing around 400 individual specimens.Up to four species have been found in these clusters, but two species are more common. Trilobite clusters bear a high percentage of disarticulated specimens that we interpret as moults. Additionally, measurements of bioclast orientation and the dorsoventral attitude suggests very quiet water conditions followed by rapid burial events, prior to scavenger disturbance. Together, this indicates that the fossil assemblages were a result of a biological phenomenon rather than mechanical processes, allowing us to interpret the position of the fossil parts as diferent moulting confgurations.Since the trilobite assemblage seems to be in situ, the large number of exuviae suggests a local place of migration. This was triggered by the need for group protection while moulting, which is suggestive of gregarious behaviour, possibly synchronized. These trilobites from the Cambrian Epoch 2, Age 4 constitute one of the earliest known gregarious community of trilobites and has important implications for understanding the ecology of this group during their emergence in the Cambrian.
PB Nature Publishing Group
YR 2020
FD 2020
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/98661
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/98661
LA eng
NO Corrales-García, Alejandro, et al. «Synchronized Moulting Behaviour in Trilobites from the Cambrian Series 2 of South China». Scientific Reports, vol. 10, n.o 1, agosto de 2020, p. 14099.  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-70883-5.
NO National Natural Science Foundation of China
NO Universidad de los Andes (Colombia)
NO The strategic Priority Research Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences
NO Ministry of Science and Technology of China
NO China Geological Survery
NO Guizhou Bureau of Science and Technology
NO Ministerio de Economía, Comercio y Empresa (España)
DS Docta Complutense
RD 20 abr 2025