The reporter learned from Northwestern University on September 17 that Han Jian, a researcher in the Department of Geology at the university, and other relevant researchers from inside and outside the United Nations discovered a new species of steppe in the Chengjiang biota of Yunnan, which dates back about 518 million years. It is currently the closest known fossil to the common ancestor of the crown group of stepped animals, providing key evidence for solving the mystery of the evolution of the body structure of stepping animals such as starfish and stigmas. The relevant research results were published online in the international academic journal “Contemporary Biology” on the evening of September 16.

The reporter learned from Northwestern University on September 17 that Han Jian, a researcher in the Department of Geology at the university, and other relevant researchers from inside and outside the United Nations discovered a new species of steppe in the Chengjiang biota of Yunnan, which dates back about 518 million years. It is currently the closest known fossil to the common ancestor of the crown group of stepped animals, providing key evidence for solving the mystery of the evolution of the body structure of stepping animals such as starfish and stigmas. The relevant research results were published online in the international academic journal “Contemporary Biology” on the evening of September 16.