page_title: Vetulicola rectangulata
section_title: Description
hierarchical_section_title: Vetulicola rectangulata / Description
caption_attribution_description: English: Size comparison of the small deuterostome Vetulicola rectangulata (about 7 cm long). Español: Comparativa de tamaño del pequeño deuterostomo Vetulicola rectangulata (entre de 7 cm de largo).
context_page_description: Vetulicola rectangulata is a species of small, Early Cambrian deuterostome animals from the Chengjiang biota of China.
context_section_description: Like V. cuneata, V. rectangulata has a body composed of two distinct parts of approximately equal length. The anterior part is oval to rectangular in shape, enclosed by a carapace-like structure of four rigid cuticular plates fused together, with a small mouth at the front end: there is a keel-like extension of the body wall on the top and belly.  Unlike in V. cuneata, the mouth region does not protrude out.  The tail-like posterior section is slender, strongly cuticularised and placed dorsally. Paired openings connecting the pharynx to the outside run down the sides. These features are interpreted as possible primitive gill slits. Vetulicola rectangulata could be up to 7 cm long, and up to 4 cm in height (most specimens being 3.6 cm high).
caption: Size comparison
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