Fecal Revolution May Have Fueled Cambrian Explosion, Scientists Say

Researchers propose that a surge in fecal matter from early marine animals supplied nutrients to seafloor sediments, helping trigger the rapid diversification of life during the Cambrian explosion about 540 million years ago. The hypothesis links the evolution of more complex digestive systems and the appearance of coprolites (fossilized feces) to a “nutrient firework” that enriched marine ecosystems.

An international team that includes Australian scientists and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) presented the idea in the journal *Trends in Ecology & Evolution*, suggesting that fecal recycling acted alongside rising oxygen levels and genetic innovation to drive the Cambrian burst of biodiversity.