Lab #2: Sponges and Corals. At the end of this lab, you should be able to: 1. Identify a fossil as a sponge, archeocyathid, rugose, tabulate or scleractinian coral. 2. Know the skeletal structure and ...

The mesh-like fossil would push back the oldest known animal on Earth by more than 300 million years. But like many claims of very old life, the study is kicking up lively debate.

More than 514 million years ago, long before dinosaurs roamed Earth, sponge-like creatures called archaeocyathids were ...

When they surveyed the Arctic sponge grounds, the researchers also discovered tiny shrimp, small worms and pudgy sea stars. Even tufts of deep-sea coral poked out from the fossil-eating sponges below.

University of Missouri researchers find Earth's ancient animal reefs were surprisingly sparse compared to their modern ...

Living fossils and rare corals revealed An exploration of the deep Coral Sea Date: January 19, 2016 Source: James Cook University Summary: A team of researchers has published their analysis of ...

Geobiologists reported a 550 million-year-old sea sponge that had been missing from the fossil record. The discovery sheds new light on a conundrum that has stumped zoologists and paleontologists ...

Petoskey stones existed about 390 million years ago, according to Backyard Fossils. Other corals and coral-like animals include the Charlevoix stone, horn coral, sea sponge and branching coral.

The Lophiostroma leizunia has pushed back the fossil record of this group of sponges and the reefs they produced 20 million years earlier than they thought, according to a study published in PNAS.

An investigation of previously unexplored depths of Australia's Coral Sea has revealed living fossils, rare corals and sponges, and ecosystems that have remained largely unchanged for millions of ...