Fossilized walking cactus found in China

Published on February 24th, 2011 | by Sevaan Franks

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The fossilized remains of an extinct funny-looking “walking cactus” has been found in China.

The 2.4-inch-long (6-centimeter-long) Diania cactiformis had a worm-like body and ten pairs of armored and likely jointed legs. It would have lived about 500 million years ago during a period of rapid evolution called the Cambrian explosion.

Study leader Jianni Liu discovered the animal during a 2006 excavation in southwestern China‘s Yunnan Province.

[Full story]

Story: Christine Dell’Amore, National Geographic News | Photo: Jianni Liu

Tags: Cambrian Explosion, China, Fossils

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