Opabinia

fossil animal

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Last updated

July 1, 2026

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Opabinia was a bizarre marine animal that lived during the Cambrian Period, approximately 500 million years ago. It is known from exceptionally preserved fossils found in deposits like the Burgess Shale in Canada.1

This creature possessed a unique body plan, featuring five eyes mounted on its head and a distinctive, nozzle-like appendage extending from its front. This flexible proboscis was equipped with a pair of claws, which scientists believe Opabinia used to stir up seafloor sediment and capture hidden prey. Its unusual appearance and features make it one of the most celebrated invertebrates from the Cambrian seas, offering valuable insights into the diversity of ancient life.1

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Burgess Shale
…down its plated back; and Opabinia, which had five eyes and a long nozzle, have led many scientists to conclude that the Cambrian Period may have produced many unique phyla. However, deposits discovered in China, Greenland, and elsewhere have demonstrated that at least some of the shale’s oddities (including Hallucigenia…
Read More
…down its plated back; and Opabinia, which had five eyes and a long nozzle, have led many scientists to conclude that the Cambrian Period may have produced many unique phyla. However, deposits discovered in China, Greenland, and elsewhere have demonstrated that at least some of the shale’s oddities (including Hallucigenia…
Read More