Tulip Beds
The Tulip Beds is a fossil locality within the larger Burgess Shale that is located in Canada's Yoho National Park. It is a smaller member of the larger Campsite Cliff Shale Member, which exists above the Yoho River Limestone Member, on top of Mount Stephen. The locality is dated to the Miaolingian epoch of the Cambrian period, around 508 million years old. The beds represent one of the more recently discovered localities from the Burgess Shale, with it being first uncovered in 1983. Fossils from the Tulip Beds are found within multiple separate outcrops: the "Above Campsite quarry" and the "Talus Site". The Tulip Beds have yielded plentiful fossils, with up to 2,553 fossil specimens have been collected from the two outcrops since the localities discovery. The majority of the fossils are known from the Above Campsite outcrop, with the majority of the collecting occurring between 1983-2010. The locality gained its name due to the copious amount of fossils from the area belonging to Siphusauctum gregarium, a species of stem-group ctenophore colloquially known as the "Tulip Animal". This species is one of the most abundant organisms from the Tulip Beds, with at least 1,133 specimens known from the locality. Due to its stratigraphic location at the base of the Campsite Cliff Shale Member, the Tulip Beds represent one of the oldest localities within the Burgess Shale. Like the majority of the other localities of the Burgess Shale, the ecosystem of the Tulip Beds sat at the base of a large submarine canyon known as the Cathedral escarpment. However, the ecosystem of the beds were more distal to the base of the escarpment compared to the other localites. The ecosystem would've sat under 100 to 300 meters of water, either at the margin, or in the Mesopelagic zone. The fauna of the Tulip Beds are dominated by sessile taxa, in terms of overall abundance, with mobile taxa having a slightly greater amount of diversity. The fauna of the Tulip Beds is made up of both taxa found in other localites of the Burgess Shale, and other taxa known only from this locality.Location and stratigraphy
The Tulip Beds were first discovered in 1983, making it one of the more recently discovered localities of the Burgess Shale. Originally, the Tulip Beds was simply known as the "S7 locality", and would later receive its name due to the common occurrence of Siphusauctum gregarium fossils at the site. The locality is located on the northwestern portion of Mount Stephen, near the town of Field in the province of British Columbia. The site itself is around 4 km southwest of the younger Walcott Quarry locality, which itself is located on Fossil Ridge. The beds extend for at most 150 meters, with typical height of around 3-12 meters tall along the mountainside. The base of the Tulip Beds occurs on top of the larger Yoho River Limestone Member, making it one of the oldest localities of the Burgess Shale. Fossils from the locality are known from two separate outcrops: an in situ quarry nicknamed "Above Campsite", and multiple talus deposits nicknamed the "Talus Site". These two sites are around 0.2 km apart, and show the characteristic mudstone, limestone, and concretions known from the Campsite Cliff Shale Member. The exact age of the member is thought to belong to the third series of the fifth stage of the Cambrian, around 508 million years ago, as evidenced by the presence of the Bathyuriscus-Elrathina Zone within the member.Paleoenvironment
The exact location of the Tulip Beds compared to the base of the Cathedral escarpment is thought to be more distal compared to the majority of the other Burgess Shale localities, such as Marble Canyon and the Walcott quarry. This is thought due to the relative distance of Mount Stephen compared to the escarpment, which is around 1,500 meters away from the mountains northeastern portion. The ecosystem would've sat In gloomy water, near, or in the Mesopelagic zone, similarly to most of the other nearby localities. The majority of the fauna of the Tulip Beds include sessile taxa, notably Siphusauctum gregarium, which is known from around 1,133 specimens alone from the locality. Alongside S. gregarium, the sessile taxa mostly include suspension feeding organisms. The fauna includes taxa common in other Burgess Shale localities, and some which are only found at the Tulip Beds.Arthropoda
A wide variety of total-group and stem-group arthropods are known from the Tulip Beds.Lobopodia
Like with most other Burgess Shale localities, the lobopodians are rare within the Tulip Beds, with a handful of genera known.Porifera
Among the sessile taxa of the Tulip Beds, Poriferans hold the highest diversity, with up to a dozen genera known.Ctenophora
Ctenophores, whilst not being the most diverse group in the Tulip Beds, were by far the most abundant group, with thousands of fossils known.Priapulida
A handful of priapulid worms are known from the Tulip Beds.Mollusca
The mollusks of the Tulip Beds vary widely in terms of body plans.Brachiopoda
s are moderately common within the Tulip Beds.Chancelloriida
The Chancellorids, are among the sessile taxa of the Tulip Beds.Cnidaria
The cnidarians of the Tulip Beds are moderately rare.Cyanobacteria
, being photosynthesizers, would've been key components of the shales ecosystem.are rare within the Tulip Beds, with one genus known.Miscellaneous taxa
This list includes taxa that are either poorly understood, or do not fit in the above groups.