Bicellum brasieri is a fossil holozoan.[1] It is one billion years old and could be the oldest example of complex multicellularity in the evolutionary lineage leading to the animals,[2][3] and has been described as bridging "the gap between the very first living creatures — single-celled organisms — and more complex multicellular life."[4] It was discovered in 2021, and is posthumously named after the late Martin Brasier, a paleontologist who was a co-author of the paper that first described it.[5]
| Bicellum brasieri Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Multiple specimens of B. brasieri, such as the holotype (A) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Clade: | Amorphea |
| Clade: | Obazoa |
| (unranked): | Opisthokonta |
| (unranked): | Holozoa |
| Genus: | †Bicellum |
| Species: | †B. brasieri |
| Binomial name | |
| †Bicellum brasieri Strother et al. 2021[1] | |
Fossil site
Bicellum was found in sediments from the Diabaig Formation in Loch Torridon, Scotland. The Diabaig Formation, considered to represent an ancient lake deposit,[6] was already known to preserve the first non-marine eukaryotes.[7]
References
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