An article published in the journal “Proceedings of the Royal Society B.” reports the identification of the oldest known jellyfish species, dating back to about 508 million years ago, in the Cambrian period. A team of researchers named it Burgessomedusa phasmiformis after examining 182 exceptionally well-preserved specimens that were found in the famous Burgess Shale in Canada. These up to 20 centimeters tall animals were equipped with over 90 short tentacles they could use to hunt other animals. This discovery helps to reconstruct the evolutionary history of jellyfish and in general of the phylum of cnidarians, one of the oldest.