Paleontologists have analyzed the body profiles of Ediacaran-Cambrian organisms by using trace fossils as proxies for body fossils. A reconstruction of early Cambrian ocean life in South China. Image credit: Dongjing Fu. The so-called Cambrian explosion is commonly labeled as the time in Earth’s history when animal body plans suddenly appear. Most studies suggest that this event occurred between 541 million and 530 million years ago at the beginning...
