Arthropleura: Difference between revisions
Apokryltaros (talk | contribs) mNo edit summary |
made link |
||
| Line 29: | Line 29: | ||
==Description and behavior== |
==Description and behavior== |
||
[[File:Giardino dei semplici, mostra dinosauri, arthropleura armata.JPG|left|thumb|219x219px|Reconstruction of ''A. armata''.]] |
[[File:Giardino dei semplici, mostra dinosauri, arthropleura armata.JPG|left|thumb|219x219px|Reconstruction of ''A. armata''.]] |
||
Contrary to earlier and popular beliefs, ''Arthropleura'' was not a predator but an herbivorous arthropod. Because none of the known [[fossil]]s have the [[mouth]] preserved, scientists suppose that ''Arthropleura'' did not have strongly sclerotized and powerful mouth parts, because such would have been preserved at least in some of the fossils. Some fossils have been found with lycopod fragments and [[fern|pteridophyte]] [[spore]]s in the gut and in associated [[coprolite]]s,<ref>{{cite journal |author=A. C. Scott, W. G. Chaloner & S. Paterson |year=1985 |title=Evidence of pteridophyte–arthropod interactions in the fossil record |journal=[[Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh]] |volume=86B |pages=133–140 |url=http://eprints.rhul.ac.uk/87/1/34Scottetal1985.pdf |format=[[Portable Document Format|PDF]]}}</ref> clearly documenting that this animal indeed fed on [[plant]]s. |
Contrary to earlier and popular beliefs, ''Arthropleura'' was not a predator but an herbivorous arthropod. Because none of the known [[fossil]]s have the [[mouth]] preserved, scientists suppose that ''Arthropleura'' did not have strongly sclerotized and powerful mouth parts, because such would have been preserved at least in some of the fossils. Some fossils have been found with [[lycopod]] fragments and [[fern|pteridophyte]] [[spore]]s in the gut and in associated [[coprolite]]s,<ref>{{cite journal |author=A. C. Scott, W. G. Chaloner & S. Paterson |year=1985 |title=Evidence of pteridophyte–arthropod interactions in the fossil record |journal=[[Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh]] |volume=86B |pages=133–140 |url=http://eprints.rhul.ac.uk/87/1/34Scottetal1985.pdf |format=[[Portable Document Format|PDF]]}}</ref> clearly documenting that this animal indeed fed on [[plant]]s. |
||
Fossilized footprints from ''Arthropleura'' have been found in many places. These appear as long, parallel rows of small prints, which show that it moved quickly across the [[forest]] floor, swerving to avoid obstacles, such as trees and rocks. Its [[Animal tracks|tracks]] have the [[ichnotaxon]] name ''Diplichnites cuithensis''.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2004AM/finalprogram/abstract_76052.htm |year=2004 |title=The giant ''Arthropleura'' trackway ''Diplichnites cuithensis'' from the Cutler Group (Upper Pennsylvanian) of New Mexico |author=Adrian P. Hunt, Spencer G. Lucas, Allan Lerner and Joseph T. Hannibal |journal=[[Geological Society of America]] Abstracts with Programs |volume=36 |issue=5 |pages=66}}</ref> |
Fossilized footprints from ''Arthropleura'' have been found in many places. These appear as long, parallel rows of small prints, which show that it moved quickly across the [[forest]] floor, swerving to avoid obstacles, such as trees and rocks. Its [[Animal tracks|tracks]] have the [[ichnotaxon]] name ''Diplichnites cuithensis''.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2004AM/finalprogram/abstract_76052.htm |year=2004 |title=The giant ''Arthropleura'' trackway ''Diplichnites cuithensis'' from the Cutler Group (Upper Pennsylvanian) of New Mexico |author=Adrian P. Hunt, Spencer G. Lucas, Allan Lerner and Joseph T. Hannibal |journal=[[Geological Society of America]] Abstracts with Programs |volume=36 |issue=5 |pages=66}}</ref> |
||
Revision as of 03:34, 22 September 2013
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (March 2011) |
| Arthropleura Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
| |
| fossil footprints, Laggan Harbour, Isle of Arran, Scotland | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Subphylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Order: | † Arthropleuridea Waterlot, 1934
|
| Family: | † Arthropleuridae Zittel, 1848
|
| Genus: | † Arthropleura Meyer, 1853
|
| Species | |
| |
Arthropleura (Greek for rib joint) was a 0.3–2.6 metre (1–8.5 feet) long relative of centipedes and millipedes, native to the upper Carboniferous (340 to 280 million years ago) of what is now northeastern North America and Scotland. It is the largest known land invertebrate of all time, and would have had few predators.
Description and behavior
Contrary to earlier and popular beliefs, Arthropleura was not a predator but an herbivorous arthropod. Because none of the known fossils have the mouth preserved, scientists suppose that Arthropleura did not have strongly sclerotized and powerful mouth parts, because such would have been preserved at least in some of the fossils. Some fossils have been found with lycopod fragments and pteridophyte spores in the gut and in associated coprolites,[1] clearly documenting that this animal indeed fed on plants.
Fossilized footprints from Arthropleura have been found in many places. These appear as long, parallel rows of small prints, which show that it moved quickly across the forest floor, swerving to avoid obstacles, such as trees and rocks. Its tracks have the ichnotaxon name Diplichnites cuithensis.[2]
Arthropleura evolved from crustacean-like ancestors earlier in the Carboniferous, and was able to grow larger than modern arthropods, partly because of the greater partial pressure of oxygen in Earth's atmosphere at that time, and because of the lack of large terrestrial vertebrate predators. Fossil tracks of an arthropod dating back to the Silurian are sometimes attributed to either Arthropleura, or a Silurian- to Early-Devonian millipede called Eoarthropleura. Arthropleura became extinct at the start of the Permian period, when the moist climate began drying out, destroying the rainforests of the Carboniferous, and allowing the desertification characteristic of the Permian. Because of this, oxygen levels in the atmosphere began to decline to more modest levels. None of the giant arthropods (except for the giant dragonflies such as Meganeuropsis, which continued thriving throughout the Permian) could survive the new dry, lower-oxygen climate.
In popular culture
Arthropleura was featured in the BBC series Walking With Monsters (2005) as well as in Prehistoric Park (2006) and First Life (2010). It was also used as the central time-shifted creature in the second episode of the ITV series Primeval (2007), although the production increased the Arthropleura to six meters in length, and gave it a venomous bite.
References
- ^ A. C. Scott, W. G. Chaloner & S. Paterson (1985). "Evidence of pteridophyte–arthropod interactions in the fossil record" (PDF). Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. 86B: 133–140.
- ^ Adrian P. Hunt, Spencer G. Lucas, Allan Lerner and Joseph T. Hannibal (2004). "The giant Arthropleura trackway Diplichnites cuithensis from the Cutler Group (Upper Pennsylvanian) of New Mexico". Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. 36 (5): 66.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
- 2005: BBC television series Walking with Monsters by Tim Haines
- 2006: ITV television series Prehistoric Park episode 5
- 2006: The Complete Guide to Prehistoric Life. P. 37. Canada: Firefly Books Ltd.
- 2007: ITV television series Primeval episode 2 by Impossible Pictures
External links
- Lyall I. Anderson, Jason A. Dunlop, Carl A. Horrocks, Heather M. Winkelmann & R. M. C. Eagar (1998). "Exceptionally preserved fossils from Bickershaw, Lancashire UK (Upper Carboniferous, Westphalian A (Langsettian))". Geological Journal. 32 (3): 197–210. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-1034(199709)32:3<197::AID-GJ739>3.0.CO;2-6.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Arthropleura tracks found at Crail, Fife, in Scotland.
- {http://www.prehistoric-wildlife.com/species/a/arthropleura.html}a profile about the arthropleura. by Lochlan.S and Zach.M
