About Zhiliang Zhang
I am interested in evolutionary phenomena recorded by organic or mineralized fossils during the Cambrian evolutionary radiation and The Great Ordovician Bio-diversification, the most remarkable evolutionary events of animal diversification that have occurred on Earth over the last 540 million years. My current research is devoted to understanding the shape-size variation and bio-mineralization of early skeletal animals, and bringing this information into phylogenetics, trends and patterns of evolution.
Intro Content
Nature
A Cambrian origin for the colonial phylum Bryozoa
Bryozoa (moss animals) is the most diverse lophophorate phylum in Earth history, yet we know very little about when and where they first evolved. Fossil evidence from Australia & China unveils the oldest bryozoans during the Cambrian explosion, extending their first occurrence by ~35 million years.
