In the past, some animals had predators that made holes in their shells. These holes ended up fossilized and tell us about the first battles between predators and prey that affected how both species changed over time.
A paleontologist from the American Museum of Natural History, Russell Bicknell, explains that this discovery shows how important predation was in the early animal world.
The shells belonged to a specific type of shellfish called Lapworthella fasciculata that lived during the Cambrian Explosion in what is now South Australia.
The shells showed evidence of being attacked by predators, leading to the prey evolving thicker shells for protection.
This back-and-forth between predator and prey is the earliest example of an evolutionary arms race, showing how quickly species can change when under pressure from each other.
Strong pressures like this can even lead to the creation of new species over time.
The research about these ancient battles was published in a journal called Current Biology.
Vocabulary List:
- Predator /ˈprɛdətər/ (noun): An animal that naturally preys on others.
- Prey /preɪ/ (noun): An animal that is hunted and killed by another for food.
- Evolutionary /ˌiːvəˈluːʃənəri/ (adjective): Relating to or denoting the gradual development of something especially from a simple to a more complex form.
- Fossilized /ˈfɒsɪlaɪzd/ (verb): Preserved in rock; converted into a fossil.
- Cambrian /ˈkeɪmbriən/ (adjective): Relating to a period in the Paleozoic era known for the emergence of many marine species.
- Pressure /ˈprɛʃər/ (noun): The continuous physical force exerted on or against an object by something in contact with it.
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