Fossil Cluster of Huainan Worms

Fossil Cluster of Huainan Worms

Situated on the southern bank of the Huai River in Anhui Province, Bagong Mountain has been famous since ancient times for the Battle of Fei River. Today, it is celebrated for the numerous rare ancient biological fossils buried within it—particularly the "Huainan Worm" discovered in the 1980s—which shocked both China and abroad. In 1984, at the 27th International Geological Congress in Moscow, Chinese paleobiologists presented a research report on the "Huainan Worm," which sparked great interest among scholars worldwide. This discovery directly challenged the internationally accepted timeline of geological periods and the history of crustal movements.

Darwin believed that animal life had appeared less than 600 million years ago, so the understanding that the "upper boundary of the Paleozoic era was 600 million years ago" held for over a century. It wasn’t until 1959, when scientists discovered the Ediacara biota fossils in Australia, that dating results proved animals had existed on Earth 600–700 million years ago. Now, this previously considered limit for the emergence of animal life is being pushed back again due to discoveries like the Huainan Worm fossils: the origin of animal life dates back at least 800 million years. As the renowned paleontologist and professor from Australia, Professor Creswell, put it: "The discovery of the Huainan Worm and related research mark remarkable new progress in late Precambrian paleontology and geology, addressing some significant yet very challenging issues."

The mountainous areas near Huainan City consist of sedimentary limestone with clear strata and abundant fossils, which have long attracted experts and scholars from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and around the world to conduct research. However, the discovery of the Huainan Worm was purely accidental. Twenty years ago, several Chinese geologists and paleontologists came to Huainan for an investigation. Near Nantang in Bagong Mountain, they noticed some peculiar, elongated worm-like fossils on large rocks exposed by road construction, which immediately caught the experts' attention. These were fossils they had never seen or heard of before. After collecting and analyzing them, they were found to be the remains of animals from 800 million years ago. In subsequent investigations, careful scholars discovered more small worm-like fossils in other parts of the mountain. These worm fossils are all unique global finds, formed between 800 million and 1 billion years ago. Because they bear no resemblance to any fossils ever discovered on Earth, scientists named them "Huainan Worms."

The currently discovered Huainan Worm fossil cluster in Bagong Mountain features well-preserved specimens with clear structures. More importantly, it includes a relatively large variety of species, which can be divided into at least three types. The first type resembles flat pancakes in various circular geometric shapes. The second type resembles silkworm pupae, short and cylindrical, belonging to annelids (such as the Cylindrical Huainan Worm and Anhui Ancient Maw Worm). The third type is the most famous, resembling modern sea worms, with dense horizontal wrinkles on their body surface and lengths ranging from 1 to 2 meters. They belong to the class of Pogonophora, a type of marine animal. The Huainan Worm has pushed the timeline of animal evolution much further back than expected, which caught experts at home and abroad completely off guard. Based on this, some scholars assert: life originated in Huainan.

In fact, the ancient biological fossils in the Huainan region go far beyond just these. The southwestern part of Bagong Mountain is widely scattered with even older algal fossils, with clear patterns visible when the rock layers are split open. About 25 km away, on Shangyao Mountain, fossils of Pogonophora, annelids, and trilobites have been discovered, formed around the same time as the Huainan Worm. Amphibian fossils on Datong Mountain are currently under study. The central region of the Huainan Mountains preserves more advanced animal fossils from the Cenozoic era, such as the swollen-kidney deer, saber-toothed tiger, flying birds, and climbing mice—birds and mammals. Additionally, the Huainan region is also home to one of China’s southernmost large coal mines. The coal seams formed at different times and contain a wealth of plant fossils preserved within them. Overall, the distribution of ancient biological fossils in the Huainan mountainous area is quite complete, with traces of life from almost every geological period. This also helps fill in the missing pages of China’s Precambrian history. Experts exclaim: the Huainan mountainous area is truly a super fossil specimen museum. Internationally renowned geologist Dr. Walter from Australia, after conducting an on-site investigation in Huainan, predicted: "The Huainan region will become a holy land for global paleontology." Canadian paleontologist Professor Hoffman, after visiting the "Huainan Biota" fossils, praised: "Some of these fossils are the most precious in the world."

In fact, the significance of the ancient fossil cluster discovery in the Huainan region goes far beyond that. The existence of the Huainan Worm indicates that the area was once a relatively warm shallow sea continental shelf environment. If the suture line between the southern Yangtze ancient landmass and the northern Sino-Korean ancient landmass lies within the Qinling-Huaiyang mountain range, when exactly did their convergence occur? How did the ancient geographical environment of the Huainan region evolve? How can we explain the presence of so many types of fossils with a complete chronological sequence in such a geographically close area (with the farthest two fossil groups no more than 40 km apart)? Such questions are currently focal points of scholarly attention. In light of this, in November 2001, the Ministry of Land and Resources officially designated the mountainous area near Huainan as the "Bagong Mountain National Geopark."

The Huainan mountainous area has an ancient formation history, and its strata preserve many tectonic landforms. With rich folds and faults, the terrain is diverse. Intense leaching has created extensive stone forests, forming the largest stone forest landscape in northern China. The bedrock of Bagong Mountain gives rise to trees, and the scattered stone forests are another masterpiece of external erosion. The mountain is covered with lush vegetation and ancient towering trees, and was listed as a provincial-level forest park as early as 1990. Adjacent to the national historical and cultural city of Shou County, cultural landmarks abound. Bagong Mountain is a perfect blend of ancient, historical, and modern essence, integrating tourism, education, and scientific research. This globally watched forest and geopark continues to unveil lesser-known chapters in the Earth's developmental history.