Cotyledion tylodes

3D Model

Yunnan Province, China, ~518 million years old.

Cotyledion lived on the sea floor, using tentacles to feed on particles suspended in the water. Some individuals have been found attached to small fragment of trilobites. The overall body shape, presence of tentacles surrounding the mouth and U-shaped gut, are characters that unite Cotyledion with entoprocts – a modern group of animals that measure less than a centimetre across.

Created for the First Animals exhibition at Oxford University Museum of Natural History: www.oum.ox.ac.uk/firstanimals

Model by Mighty Fossils: www.mightyfossils.com