The cuticle of the aglaspidid arthropods, a red‐herring in the early history of the vertebrates

摘要

The supposed early vertebrateAnatolepishas recently been reinterpreted by Peel (1979;Rapp. Gr∅nl. Geol. Unders. 91) as an arthropod, probably aglaspidid. The cuticle ofAglaspisshows a characteristic arthropodan structure, including laminations and ducts, but it is apparently composed of primary phosphate. Apart from composition, the skeletal histology ofAnatolepisis totally different, and this, together with more general considerations, eliminates any possibility of arthropod affinity.Anatolepisremains the earliest known vertebrate.Aglaspididae, cuticle, ultrastructure, Vertebrata, Upper Cambria