PHOTO IN THE NEWS: Bizarre Giant-Headed Predator Found

National Geographic ^ | March 19, 2009 | Christine Dell'Amore

[nickcarraway]

A giant head and gill-covered body make this newly reconstructed creature (pictured) "one of most bizarre fossil creatures that there is," one scientist said.

The 505-million-year-old critter was first identified in 1912 from fossil pieces. Over the years, bits of it showed up in museum collections mislabeled as jellyfish, sea cucumbers, and various other creatures.

But expeditions in the 1990s began to uncover more complete specimens, which suggested the animal, dubbed Hurdia Victoria, was much more unique than previously thought.

Now, a well-preserved specimen found in the collections of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., and fossil fragments from the Burgess Shale in British Columbia, Canada, have helped scientists to finally piece together the animal's appearance.

(Related: "Museum Secrets Unmasked by "Museomics" Technologies".)

At about 12 to 16 inches (30 to 40 centimeters) long, Hurdia was one of the largest hunters prowling the seas during the Cambrian period.

As a free swimmer—a trait rare at that time—the invertebrate likely caught "whatever it could get its claws onto," such as mollusks and sponges, said lead study author Allison Daley, a Ph.D. student at Sweden's Uppsala University.

The shield protruding from Hurdia's head—which did not offer protection to its body—has particularly stumped Daley and colleagues, whose research appears tomorrow in the journal Science.

Daley speculates that the shield acted as a feeding aid, funneling prey toward the animal's appendages.

[nickcarraway]

[exist]

Not being a jerk but doesn’t that thing look tasty? Like in jambalaya or that New Orleans thing with crawfish.

[Mr. Jazzy]

Put a “black widow” dress on it and it could pass for Michele.

[Puppage]

[Zuben Elgenubi]

Daley speculates that the shield acted as a feeding aid, funneling prey toward the animal's appendages.

I would speculate it folded within itself, like an aadvark, for protection.

[sinanju]

Another Burgess Shale beastie.

12 to 16 inches, but wasn’t Anomalocaris an even bigger predator?

[gimme1ibertee]

LOLOL!!! I was expecting this to be post #1.....

[al baby]

Lets get Mikey to try it

[Mad Dawgg]

"PHOTO IN THE NEWS: Bizarre Giant-Headed Predator Found"

[Puppage]

I was expecting this to be post #1.....

I was a tad late get'n here.

[Big_Monkey]

SHRIMPZILLA

[BRL]

The 505-million-year-old critter

How do we know if its not really 506 million years old?

[Lady GOP]

whoa...cool !

[supremedoctrine]

I was sure it was going to be Michelle Obama....

[Big_Monkey]

"How do we know if its not really 506 million years old?

First hand testimony from one Helen Thomas, Washington DC.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

Hungry, eh? What you see there, like many restaurant menus, is merely an airbrushed figment of some chef's intelligent design alleged "scientist's" fevered pro-evolutionary-premise imagination...

[doc1019]

Giant-Headed Eared Predator Found

And he ran for president.

[Little Pig]

It was, but since there are few known creatures from this time period, and even fewer that were this big, they can still say it was one of the largest (known).

Also, this thing bears more than a small resemblance to Anomalocaris as well, note the appendages under the head, near the (presumed) location of the mouth.

If you haven’t yet seen it, the BBC “Walking with...” series has one episode called “Walking with monsters” that looks at the Cambrian period, including Anomalocaris, along with the Carboniferous period, and the advent of the “mammal-like” reptiles like Dimetrodon and Diictodont. It’s well worth it, even though the producers took some liberties with the animals in the area of behaviors (since we have no idea what they really did). I would have liked to see some of the other Burgess creatures like Wiwaxia and Hallucinogenia

[Malone LaVeigh]

Not being a jerk but doesn’t that thing look tasty? Like in jambalaya or that New Orleans thing with crawfish.

Oooooweeee! I'm wit you cher!

[MHGinTN]

Please, a nicer man you will not find. Can’t you post Keith Oberself or some other flimflam liberal, not conservative, gentleman, Neil Cavuto?

[Mad Dawgg]

"Please, a nicer man you will not find."

I Love Neal but if you watch his show his viewers always send him emails about his Giant Head. Its a running joke on his show.

[MHGinTN]

Don’t get to watch him often, though I do seem to remeber him reading a few e-mails regarding his head.

[AmyNeal7252]

http://vanguardsofamerica.com/Images/Corey-&-Barney-Frank.gif

[Lucretia Borgia]

Obviously, a larval graboid.

[Fred Nerks]

STROLLING WITH CAMBRIAN FOSSILS

Welcome to the world of giant Cambrian predators!

[SunkenCiv]

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	Gods Graves Glyphs	Thanks Fred Nerks. That's a creepy lookin' critter, egad! To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach
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[Free_SJersey]

What do you want, a birth certificate? Sorry, but to ask for proof is racist.

[uglybiker]

First hand testimony from one Helen Thomas, Washington DC.

I really didn't need to read that. The last thing i want to think about is how she would know about anything "...about 12 to 16 inches (30 to 40 centimeters) long...'.

[going hot]

armadillo perhaps?

[Mike Darancette]

There was some really strange stuff swimming around in those days.

[ForGod'sSake]

What an archeological reconstruction might look like were pieces found strewn around a fossil field...

[happygrl]

Precious.

[Salamander]

That picture shorted out just about all of my neurons.

Thanks a bunch.

[ForGod'sSake]

ROFL!!!

[GOPJ]

There’s lots of liberals to go after - many with big heads...

[Mad Dawgg]

"There’s lots of liberals to go after - many with big heads..."

Its a running Joke On Neal's Show that he has a Big Head, he chuckles over it himself.

[null and void]

Hey Darks! See post #31...

[TigersEye]

0bamacus headicus

[TigersEye]

Daley speculates that the shield acted as a feeding aid, funneling prey toward the animal's appendages.

I would speculate it folded within itself, like an aadvark, for protection.

I'll give it a shot.

It kept egg clusters and hatchlings under the shield for protection. Hatchlings could eat scraps of the prey the adult was shredding.

[PistolPaknMama]

I just knew that “giant headed predator” in the headline was going to cause this picture to appear. :-)

[Darksheare]

!!!

I didn’t do it, it’s not my fault, I swear it.. waitaminnit.
Nobody’s blaming me this time.
*sigh of relief*

[bert]

You are the correct one

[bert]

Travesty, shame.

He is the best of the best

[Mad Dawgg]

"He is the best of the best"

You do know that Neal's Giant head is a running Joke on his show right, its an inside joke Neal and his fans laugh about.

[Protect the Bill of Rights]

LOL!

[Protect the Bill of Rights]

:-)

[KosmicKitty]

Not being a jerk but doesn’t that thing look tasty?

LOL - My exact thought too - Hot sauce, cocktail sauce, or lemon butter with just a touch of parsley?

[null and void]

Naaaaah, I just thought the image would do wonders for your headache.

[I’m all heart, ain’t I?]

[americanophile]

[fishtank]

Russian (literal) “Everything’s possible.”