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New Fossil Reveals Ancient Chelicerate Species, Megachelicerax cousteaui

4/10/2026

Summary

Story summary

Harvard researchers identified a new chelicerate species, Megachelicerax cousteaui, from a Utah fossil dating to 500 million years ago and named after Jacques Cousteau.
The study, published in Nature, pushes back chelicerate origins by about 20 million years.
The fossil displays pincer-like chelicerae that distinguish chelicerates from other arthropods.
Co-author Javier Ortega-Hernández notes the discovery reveals early anatomical complexity in chelicerates long overshadowed by trilobites.

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Story summary

Harvard researchers identified a new chelicerate species, Megachelicerax cousteaui, from a Utah fossil dating to 500 million years ago and named after Jacques Cousteau.
The study, published in Nature, pushes back chelicerate origins by about 20 million years.
The fossil displays pincer-like chelicerae that distinguish chelicerates from other arthropods.
Co-author Javier Ortega-Hernández notes the discovery reveals early anatomical complexity in chelicerates long overshadowed by trilobites.