Yarnemia


Yarnemia ascidiformis is a fossil tentatively classified as a tunicate. If this classification is correct, it would significantly extend the range of the tunicate fossil record from the Cambrian back into the Ediacaran.

Discovery and name

The holotype fossil of Yarnemia was found from the Ustʹ Pinega Formation between 1976 and 1978, and described in 1984.
The generic name Yarnemia comes from the village of Yarnema near which the first specimens were found. The specific epithet, ascidiformis, refers to the likeness to ascidians.

Description

Yarnemia ascidiformis is a possible tunicate, growing up to in length, with the standard oblong body and two openings, or siphons, on the top of the body to allow water to flow through them.