Oldest preserved vertebrate brain found in 319-million-year-old fish fossil
Artist's interpretation of a remarkable 319-million-year-old fish that preserves the earliest fossilized brain of a backboned animal. (Márcio L. Castro)
Share
The oldest preserved vertebrate brain has been found in a 319-million-year-old fossilized fish skull that was removed from an English coal mine over a century ago.
Revealed by a CT scan in a study led by University of Michigan researchers, the roughly inch-long brain and cranial nerves belonged to an extinct member of the large ray-finned fishes group, which today includes species like tuna, salmon, goldfish and cod.
"Here we've found remarkable preservation in a fossil examined several times before by multiple people over the past century," senior author and University of Michigan paleontologist Matt Friedman said in a news release. "But because we have these new tools for looking inside of fossils, it reveals another layer of information to us."
Friedman, who is also the director of his university's Museum of Paleontology, says the unexpected discovery was made with a micro-CT scanner, which can provide detailed internal images just like the larger medical CT scanners found in hospitals and clinics.
"I scanned it, then I loaded the data into the software we use to visualize these scans and noticed that there was an unusual, distinct object inside the skull," Friedman recalled. "It is common to see amorphous mineral growths in fossils, but this object had a clearly defined structure."
The object was brighter on the CT image than the surrounding bone or rock, meaning it was likely denser. It also had characteristics resembling the brains found in vertebrates, which are animals with spines.
"It had all these features, and I said to myself, 'Is this really a brain that I'm looking at?'" Friedman said. "So I zoomed in on that region of the skull to make a second, higher-resolution scan, and it was very clear that that's exactly what it had to be. And it was only because this was such an unambiguous example that we decided to take it further."
The fossil was discovered in a layer of soapstone at a coal mine in Lancashire in North West England and was first scientifically described in 1925. The only known specimen of its species, Coccocephalus wildi likely lived in an estuary, where it could have dined on aquatic insects, small crustaceans and other invertebrates, like the ancestors of squid and snails. Although only its skull was found, scientists believe the fish would have been about 15 to 20 centimetres long. Its jaw shape and teeth show it was probably a carnivore.
After the fish died, researchers say it was likely quickly buried in sediments with little oxygen; an environment that can slow the decomposition of soft tissue. The animal's brain would have then been replaced during fossilization with a dense mineral that preserved its three-dimensional structure in exceptional detail.
"An important conclusion is that these kinds of soft parts can be preserved, and they may be preserved in fossils that we've had for a long time—this is a fossil that's been known for over 100 years," Friedman said. "There seems to be, inside this tightly enclosed void in the skull, a little micro-environment that is conducive to the replacement of those soft parts with some kind of mineral phase, capturing the shape of tissues that would otherwise simply decay away."
The discovery also sheds light on the evolution of ray-finned fishes, which have web-like fins supported by bony spines and represent about half of all living vertebrate species.
"Not only does this superficially unimpressive and small fossil show us the oldest example of a fossilized vertebrate brain, but it also shows that much of what we thought about brain evolution from living species alone will need reworking," the study's lead author, University of Michigan doctoral student Rodrigo Figueroa, said in the news release. "With the widespread availability of modern imaging techniques, I would not be surprised if we find that fossil brains and other soft parts are much more common than we previously thought. From now on, our research group and others will look at fossil fish heads with a new and different perspective."
Friedman and Figueroa both think their work highlights the need to preserve previously discovered fossils for future study.
"That's why holding onto the physical specimens is so important," Friedman said. "Because who knows, in 100 years, what people might be able to do with the fossils in our collections now."
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.
The owner of three Calgary dogs that got loose and mauled a woman to death in 2022 has been ordered to pay a $15,000 fine within one year and banned from owning any animal for 15 years.
Residents in Ottawa’s Elmridge Gardens complex are dealing with a rat infestation that just won’t go away. Now, after doing everything they can to try to fix the issue, they are pleading with the city to step in and help.
Israel said the terms of a ceasefire deal Hamas accepted on Monday remained 'far from' meeting its demands and warned its military operations in Rafah would continue, even as it sent negotiators to talk to mediators.
Fashion's biggest night out — hosted at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York each year on the first Monday of May — is both a forever-evolving spectacle and a carefully crafted event.
Three suspects accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar last year are scheduled to appear in court in Surrey on Tuesday.
The Manitoba Court of Appeal has dismissed Peter Nygard's application for a judicial review of an order to extradite the former fashion mogul to the United States, where he faces sex trafficking and racketeering charges.
Antisemitism in Canada exploded last year as the war unfolding in Israel and Gaza was used to 'justify' the targeting of Jews in Canada, B'nai Brith said Monday as it released its latest report on antisemitism.
Residents in Ottawa’s Elmridge Gardens complex are dealing with a rat infestation that just won’t go away. Now, after doing everything they can to try to fix the issue, they are pleading with the city to step in and help.
A multi-story apartment building under construction collapsed Monday in a coastal city in South Africa, killing two construction workers and leaving 53 trapped under the rubble, authorities said.
The judge presiding over Donald Trump's hush money trial fined him US$1,000 on Monday and warned that future gag order violations could send him to jail, while jurors heard detailed testimony for the first time about the financial reimbursements at the centre of the case.
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont says he will run for reelection this year, squelching speculation that the 82-year-old progressive icon might retire at a time when the Democratic Party is anxious about the advancing age of its leaders.
China's President Xi Jingping on Monday called for a global truce during the Olympic Games in Paris this summer after the French president and the head of the European Commission urged him to use his influence on Russia to end its war in Ukraine.
An American soldier has been arrested in Russia and accused of stealing, according to U.S. officials. The soldier was stationed in South Korea and was in the process of returning home to the United States, but travelled to Russia.
ProPublica won a Pulitzer for its reporting that revealed how billionaires wooed Supreme Court justices with gifts and travel, and The Associated Press won for its coverage of immigration to the U.S. through Latin America.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government is proposing a suite of new measures and law changes aimed at countering foreign interference in Canada, amid extensive scrutiny over past meddling attempts and an ever-evolving threat landscape.
The federal New Democrats are calling out Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and his party for trying to block the bill that could pave the way for millions of Canadians to access birth control and diabetes coverage.
The Israel-Hamas war has led to a spike in 'violent rhetoric' from 'extremist actors' that could prompt some in Canada to turn to violence, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service warns.
For the first time, researchers have identified a genetic form of late-in-life Alzheimer’s disease — in people who inherit two copies of a worrisome gene.
A U.S. farmworker who caught bird flu after working with dairy cattle in Texas appears to be the first known case of mammal-to-human transmission of the virus, a new study shows.
Researchers in Israel are turning to artificial intelligence to comb through piles of records to try to identify hundreds of thousands of Jewish people killed in the Holocaust whose names are missing from official memorials.
Fashion's biggest night out — hosted at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York each year on the first Monday of May — is both a forever-evolving spectacle and a carefully crafted event.
In July 2013, Travis was hospitalized with viral cardiomyopathy, a virus that attacks the heart, and later suffered a stroke. The Country Music Hall of Famer had to relearn how to walk, spell and read in the years that followed. A condition called aphasia limits his ability to speak — it's why his wife Mary Travis assists him in interviews. It's also why he hasn't released new music in over a decade, until now.
'Incendiary objects' have allegedly been placed under machinery on the site of Northvolt's future battery plant in Monteregie, seriously endangering employees, according to the company.
London Drugs stores are unable to fill new prescriptions, the chain announced Monday, providing an update on its reopening following a cybersecurity incident.
Whether passionate about Poirot or hungry for Holmes, Winnipeg mystery obsessives have had a local haunt for over 30 years in which to search out their latest page-turners.
Princess Anne saluted Canadian veterans and current forces members and honoured her late mother during separate ceremonies Sunday in Victoria as she wrapped up a three-day British Columbia West Coast royal visit.
Amid scientists' warnings that nations need to transition away from fossil fuels to limit climate change, Canadians are still lukewarm on electric vehicles, according to a study conducted by Nanos Research for CTV News.
Drivers in Saskatchewan will now lose their licence for a week and their vehicle for a month if they are caught committing certain high-speed and dangerous offences on the road.
Eighty-two-year-old Susan Neufeldt and 90-year-old Ulrich Richter are no spring chickens, but their love blossomed over the weekend with their wedding at Pine View Manor just outside of Rosthern.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
A B.C. company has been ordered to refund a business owner who paid nearly $3,000 for architectural design services that were not provided by an architect.
After the Canucks defeated the Nashville Predators to advance to Round 2 of the NHL playoffs, Vancouver says it's looking into "potential public viewing opportunities" for upcoming games.
The first female Black superintendent in Toronto Police Service history was attempting to diversify the ranks on her own when she helped six constables cheat in a promotions exam, her lawyer told a police tribunal.
An Ontario MPP was asked again to leave the Ontario legislature on Monday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment that was banned by the Speaker last month due to its political symbolism.
The owner of three Calgary dogs that got loose and mauled a woman to death in 2022 has been ordered to pay a $15,000 fine within one year and banned from owning any animal for 15 years.
Residents in Ottawa’s Elmridge Gardens complex are dealing with a rat infestation that just won’t go away. Now, after doing everything they can to try to fix the issue, they are pleading with the city to step in and help.
Students from Sir Guy Carleton Secondary School have placed roses outside the city building in Nepean where one of their classmates was stabbed on Thursday and later died of his injuries.
Pro-Palestinian protesters who have set up an encampment at Montreal's McGill University say they're no closer to taking down their tents after meeting with members of the school administration.
'Incendiary objects' have allegedly been placed under machinery on the site of Northvolt's future battery plant in Monteregie, seriously endangering employees, according to the company.
It's been five years since a seven year-old girl was killed by her stepmother in Granby, after months of abuse, in the presence of her father who never intervened. The case put Quebec's youth protection system under the microscope. A damning report was supposed to bring about changes but little has changed since.
Alberta's municipal affairs minister declined Monday to clarify whether towns and cities would still get their say before changes are made to a contentious bill that gives the province broad authority to fire local councillors.
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.
The Manitoba Court of Appeal has dismissed Peter Nygard's application for a judicial review of an order to extradite the former fashion mogul to the United States, where he faces sex trafficking and racketeering charges.
The organization that oversees the province's Crown corporations says that a SaskTel employee was caught taking personal payments in a cash-for-credits scheme.
The City of Regina says a new warning system will help drivers avoid one of the most infamous problems in the Queen City, flooding at the Albert Street and Saskatchewan Drive underpass.
There have been two fatal wrong-way collisions on Highway 401 in the last week, and on Sunday, another driver was seen travelling in the opposite direction near Cambridge, Ont.
A couple of Stratford residents claim they have been banned from attending any city owned properties or from speaking with any city staff for three months.
Aaron Fosseneuve says the official name of the road into his home community of Cumberland House is Highway 123, but locals joke it’s not as easy as 1-2-3 — “it’s more like a 4-5-6.”
Saskatchewan travelers can breathe a sigh of relief — WestJet announced on Sunday it reached a tentative agreement with a newly-formed mechanics’ union just 48 hours before a threatened lockout.
A 32-year-old northern Ontario woman has been charged in a head-on collision on Highway 17 near Espanola that killed one and seriously injured two others Sunday.
Homeowners living near the former McCormick/Beta Brands building are again raising the alarm over a structure that has been vacant for nearly two decades.
A London, Ont. jury heard evidence on Monday that the children at the centre of a sexual abuse case sought refuge at the home of family friends just before they went to police.
The impending movement of Durham’s only inpatient hospital beds to hospitals in Walkerton and Kincardine has outraged the community and has them fearing for the future of their hospital.
Sentencing has been handed down to two men who pleaded guilty for their roles in a Barrie catwalk shooting last spring that left the victim fighting for his life.
With an infectious giggle and a strong desire to help others, Hannah Pare had all the tools to be a spectacular nurse. But that thrill has quickly turned into heartbreaking agony for Hannah's family after complications from a routine surgery cut her life short.
Ward 4 Coun. Mark McKenzie is calling for greater collaboration between the Greater Essex County District School Board (GECDSC) and the Windsor Police Service in response to a recent rise in youth crime across the city.
Three suspects accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar last year are scheduled to appear in court in Surrey on Tuesday.
London Drugs stores are unable to fill new prescriptions, the chain announced Monday, providing an update on its reopening following a cybersecurity incident.
A marine salvage operation is underway in U.S. waters off Vancouver Island after a man and his dog were forced to abandon their sinking fishing boat Friday.
Models in uniquely designed red dresses are taking to the runway in British Columbia this weekend to make a powerful fashion statement about missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
A homeless man in Newfoundland says he refuses to sleep in a shelter after workers wearing balaclavas and haz-mat suits tore down a tent encampment in St. John's on Friday.