Orthrozanclus
| Orthrozanclus Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
| Reconstruction of O. elongata by Zhao et al. (2017) | |
| Specimen of O. elongata, from Zhao et al. (2017) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Superphylum: | Lophotrochozoa |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Family: | †Halkieriidae |
| Genus: | †Orthrozanclus Conway Morris & Caron, 2007 |
| Species | |
| |
Orthrozanclus (from Greek ὄρθρος + ζᾰ́γκλον (órthros + zánklon), "dawn scythe") is a genus of sea creatures known from two species, O. reburrus from the Middle Cambrian (~505 million years ago) Burgess shale and O. elongata from Early Cambrian (~518 million years ago) Maotianshan Shales. Animals in this genus were one to two centimeters long, with spikes protruding from their armored bodies. The placement of this genus into a specific family is not universally accepted.