| Marpolia Temporal range: Lower Cambrian– Middle Cambrian |
|
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Bacteria |
| Phylum: | Hormogonales |
| Genus: | Marpolia |
| Species: | M. spissa Walcott 1919 |
Marpolia has been interpreted as a cyanobacterium, but also resembles the modern cladophoran green algae. It is known from the Middle Cambrian Burgess shale[1] and Early Cambrian deposits from the Czech Republic.[2] It comprises a dense mass of entangled, twisted filaments. It may have been free-floating or grown on other objects, although there is no evidence of attachment structures.[1] 40 specimens of Marpolia are known from the Greater Phyllopod bed, where they comprise 0.08% of the community.[3]