Oldest organism with skeleton discovered in Australia
Thursday, March 8, 2012 - 12:31
in Paleontology & Archaeology
Paleontologists have discovered the oldest animal with a skeleton. Called Coronacollina acula, the organism is between 560 million and 550 million years old. The finding provides insight into the evolution of life on the planet, why animals go extinct, and how organisms respond to environmental changes. The discovery also can help scientists recognize life elsewhere in the universe. Coronacollina acula has a number of hard parts -- structural supports -- essentially holding it up.