Endoskeletons

Back to the Cambrian

If I were to time travel, I would travel back to the Cambrian Period. An underwater adventure would be extremely ideal since no life exists on land during this period (Bagley). Shelled animals and other marine creatures evolved as well as other animals with endoskeletons and exoskeletons. The major event that happened was the Cambrian Explosion, caused by glaciations, changes in ocean chemistry, and evolution of predators (Monroe and

Wicander, p. 240). The atmosphere had plenty of oxygen, and so did the ocean. A reduction in oxygen depleting bacteria allowed more dissolved oxygen in the water and this oxygen may have also triggered the Cambrian Explosion (Collins & Waggoner). Traveling 540 million years back in time

Diverse types of mineralized algae, such as coralline red algae and dasyclad green algae, are also present (Collins & Waggoner). The brachiopods I see look very similar to clams (Bagley). A rather large predator looking creature swims by. It is rather large, and similar to something out of a science fiction movie, almost as if it was an experiment gone wrong. I soon find out that it is called an Anomalocaris. The Anomalocaris is a free swimming animal that swam through the water by flexing its lobed body (Bagley). It has compound eyes and two claw tipped appendages in front of its mouth (Bagley) and it traps its prey in fearsome mouth parts lined with hooks (National Geographic). The diversity of the marine life is due to the melting of the Proterozoic ice, which caused the sea levels to rise (Collins & Waggoner). Another strange looking predator is also present. The Opabinia has five eyes, and it catches prey using a flexible clawed arm attached to its head (National Geographic) which is quite a strange sight. Abundant coral reefs are present as well. These reefs were built by the first animals that developed calcium carbonate exoskeletons (Bagley). Arthropods are very abundant (Bagley). They also