A nematode (Captivonema cretacea gen. et sp. n.) preserved in a clitellate cocoon wall from the early Cretaceous

Abstract

A fossil worm-like organism, ca. 0.5 mm long, showing cuticle, gut and setae. is contained in the solid part of the wall of a clitellate cocoon from the Early Cretaceous (Barremian). It is interpreted as having been entrapped and embedded in the intitially viscous cocoon secretion which solidified and thus prevented decay. Size, shape, posture, and an unsegmented but annulated cuticle with irregularly distributed setae have led to the identification of the fossil as a nematode. described as Captivonema cretacea gen. et sp. n., of uncertain family and order affinity. Fossil association end mode of preservation indicate a free-living life habit in damp plant litter.