Giant Sea Arthropods Dominated Ancient Oceans, New Moroccan Fossil Site Reveals

At Taichoute, a former underwater site, paleontologists have discovered traces of large arthropods related to modern creatures like shrimp, insects or spiders swimming freely. This discovery reveals that these arthropods dominated the seas 470 million years ago. They could measure up to two meters.

According to the team of researchers, the site and its fossil archives are very different from the other Fezouata shale sites previously described and studied about 80 km away. Taichoute thus opens up new avenues for paleontological and ecological research in the region. "Everything is new about this locality, its sedimentology, its paleontology, and even the preservation of the fossils. This underscores the importance of the Fezouata site in order to complete our understanding of past life on Earth," said Dr. Farid Saleh of the University of Lausanne and the University of Yunnan, lead author of this study published in Scientific Reports.

According to Dr. Xiaoya Ma of the University of Exeter, the giant arthropods have not yet been identified, but they may belong to species already discovered on the Fezouata side. And to add: "But their large size and free-swimming lifestyle suggest they played a unique role in these ecosystems."