<i>Pisinnocaris subconigera</i> —a valid species of early Cambrian fuxianhuiid

<i>Pisinnocaris subconigera</i> was first described as a rare, small euarthropod from the early Cambrian Chengjiang biota, southwestern China. The taxonomic validity of this species was later challenged due to the lack of essential morphological details to differentiate it from <i>Fuxianhuia protensa</i>, especially from the juvenile perspective. Here, we examined the holotype and additional specimens of <i>P. subconigera</i> with multiple imaging techniques, such as microscope optical imaging, micro-CT scanning and computer-based 3D rendering, and revealed the previously unknown ventral organization of <i>P. subconigera</i>. New findings include four short prothoracic segments each bearing a pair of biramous appendages, four opisthothoracic segments each with four pairs of appendages, and four limbless abdominal segments. Both the small and large individuals exhibit unique and consistent morphological characteristics, indicating that <i>P. subconigera</i> does not represent the larval or juvenile form of any fuxianhuiid as previously proposed. Combined with phylogenetic analyses, our study suggests that <i>P. subconigera</i> remians as a valid member of the early Cambrian fuxianhuiids.

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Publication Details

Journal
PeerJ
Published
2026-02-03
DOI
https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.20483
Primary Topic
Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

Pisinnocaris subconigera —a valid species of early Cambrian fuxianhuiid

Ailin Chen, Hong Chen, Huijuan Mai, Yu Liu et al.
PeerJ
Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
article

Pisinnocaris subconigera —a valid species of early Cambrian fuxianhuiid

Ailin Chen, Hong Chen, Huijuan Mai, Yu Liu, Jin Guo
article en

Abstract

<i>Pisinnocaris subconigera</i> was first described as a rare, small euarthropod from the early Cambrian Chengjiang biota, southwestern China. The taxonomic validity of this species was later challenged due to the lack of essential morphological details to differentiate it from <i>Fuxianhuia protensa</i>, especially from the juvenile perspective. Here, we examined the holotype and additional specimens of <i>P. subconigera</i> with multiple imaging techniques, such as microscope optical imaging, micro-CT scanning and computer-based 3D rendering, and revealed the previously unknown ventral organization of <i>P. subconigera</i>. New findings include four short prothoracic segments each bearing a pair of biramous appendages, four opisthothoracic segments each with four pairs of appendages, and four limbless abdominal segments. Both the small and large individuals exhibit unique and consistent morphological characteristics, indicating that <i>P. subconigera</i> does not represent the larval or juvenile form of any fuxianhuiid as previously proposed. Combined with phylogenetic analyses, our study suggests that <i>P. subconigera</i> remians as a valid member of the early Cambrian fuxianhuiids.

PeerJVol. 14
University of Leicester (GB), Guizhou University (CN), Yunnan University (CN), Southwest Forestry University (CN), Museum of Heilongjiang Province (CN), Liupanshui Normal University (CN), Yuxi Normal University (CN)
Openalex Percentile: Top 81%
Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
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