Ancient seabed checkerboard: How setae shaped spatial distributions of Silurian brachiopods.

ABSTRACT: Understanding the drivers of spatial patterns in fossil communities is fundamental to paleoecology, yet direct evidence for biological mechanisms regulating interindividual spacing remains elusive. Brachiopod setae, hypothesized to function in feeding or defense, are exceedingly rare in the fossil record, especially among post-Cambrian taxa. Here, we present the report of exquisitely preserved setae from an exceptional in situ fossil assemblage of the early Silurian rhynchonelliform brachiopod Nucleospira calypta. Multiproxy analyses (scanning electron microscopy, X-ray fluorescence, and microcomputed tomography) revealed intricate ultrastructural details and diverse taphonomic pathways, leading to a reinterpretation of apparent calcitic preservation as primarily iron oxides with su

SUBMITTER: Huang B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12318173 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature