Waptia revisited: Intimations of behaviors

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19 Scopus citations

Abstract

The middle Cambrian taxon Waptia fieldensis offers insights into early evolution of sensory arrangements that may have supported a range of actions such as exploratory behavior, burrowing, scavenging, swimming, and escape, amongst others. Less elaborate than many modern pancrustaceans, specific features of Waptia that suggest a possible association with the pancrustacean evolutionary trajectory, include mandibulate mouthparts, a single pair of antennae, reflective triplets on the head comparable to ocelli, and traces of brain and optic lobes that conform to the pancrustacean ground pattern. This account revisits an earlier description of Waptia to further interpret the distribution of its overall morphology and receptor arrangements in the context of plausible behavioral repertoires.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)173-184
Number of pages12
JournalArthropod Structure and Development
Volume45
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 1 2016

Keywords

  • Behavior
  • Brain
  • Evolution
  • Pancrustacea
  • Sensory organization

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
  • Developmental Biology
  • Insect Science

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