Wiwaxia

fossil animal

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July 15, 2026

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Wiwaxia was an oval-shaped creature with two rows of spines along its plated back. It is a fossil animal found in the Burgess Shale, a formation known for its detailed preservation of soft-bodied organisms from the Middle Cambrian Epoch, approximately 520 to 512 million years ago. While initially thought to represent a unique phylum, further discoveries suggest Wiwaxia belonged to a lineage that diverged early and became extinct.1

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Burgess Shale
…rows of tall dorsal spines; Wiwaxia, an oval creature with two rows of spines 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,…
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…rows of tall dorsal spines; Wiwaxia, an oval creature with two rows of spines 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,…
Read More