SC Connecticut News

Paleontologists have discovered a new species of ancient arthropod, Lomankus edgecombei, in central New York. These fossils, preserved for 450 million years, are covered in pyrite or fool's gold, giving them a distinctive bright gold appearance. The fossils were found in a fossil-rich area known as Beecher’s Bed near Rome, New York.

Derek Briggs, the G. Evelyn Hutchinson Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Yale University and co-author of the study published in Current Biology, highlighted the significance of these findings. "These remarkable fossils show how rapid replacement of delicate anatomical features in pyrite before they decay, which is a signature feature of Beecher’s Bed, preserves critical evidence of the evolution of life in the oceans 450 million years ago," he said.

Lomankus edgecombei belongs to an extinct group called Megacheira and is related to modern-day horseshoe crabs, scorpions, and spiders. This species lacked eyes and had small front appendages adapted for searching ocean sediment. Its front appendages included long flagella possibly used for sensing its environment.

Luke Parry from the University of Oxford noted that "arthropods typically have one or more pairs of legs at the front of their bodies that are modified for specialized functions like sensing the environment and capturing prey." He added that these special legs make them adaptable like a "biological Swiss army knife."

The discovery suggests Megacheirans survived longer than previously believed into the Ordovician Period (443 to 485 million years ago), challenging earlier assumptions about their extinction timeline.

Beecher’s Bed has historical ties to Yale's paleontological research. Charles Emerson Beecher, former head of Yale Peabody Museum, initially studied trilobites from this site over a century ago. Briggs has continued this legacy with his work on Beecher’s Bed fossils since 1991.

Yu Liu from Yunnan University collaborated with Briggs after acquiring new fossils from a Chinese collector. Computed tomography scanning was used to create detailed 3D images of these specimens. "The preservation is remarkable," Briggs stated.

The newly identified specimens have been donated to Yale's Peabody Museum for further study and preservation.