Archive · 7 Aug 2026
Ancient poop may have driven Earth's Cambrian explosion, study says
A long, long time ago, about 540 million years, Earth experienced something called the Cambrian explosion.
During this time, lots of new kinds of animals suddenly appeared.
A new study says the answer to why this happened might be poop!
Animals that lived in the ocean went to the bathroom, and their waste sank into the water.
That poop carried tiny food pieces and nutrients all around the ocean.
The nutrients helped more animals live and grow.
Then those animals made more poop, which helped even more animals.
Scientists call this a feedback loop.
They found fossilised poop, called coprolites, that helps prove this idea.
So ancient poop may have helped life explode on Earth!
A new study in Trends in Ecology & Evolution suggests ancient faecal matter helped trigger the Cambrian explosion around 540 million years ago.
Accumulated poop distributed organic material and nutrients throughout the ocean, creating the right conditions for life to evolve.
Fossilised faeces, known as coprolites, are linked to the emergence of animals with complex digestive systems.
The Cambrian period, from about 539 million to 485 million years ago, saw almost all major animal groups emerge.
Co-author Julien Kimming notes there is no evidence of complex digestive systems before the Cambrian, with more diverse coprolites appearing over time.
- Who
- Study co-authors Russell Bicknell and Julien Kimming, a palaeontologist at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany
- What
- A study proposes that accumulated faecal matter distributed nutrients through the ocean and helped trigger the Cambrian explosion of life
- When
- Around 540 million years ago, during the Cambrian period (approximately 539 to 485 million years ago)
- Where
- In Earth's ancient oceans; the research was published in the journal Trends in Ecology & Evolution
- Why
- Poop acted as a nutrient delivery system, creating conditions for life to emerge and evolve, and later fueled complex digestive systems
- Study published in
- Trends in Ecology & Evolution
- Cambrian period
- Approximately 539 to 485 million years ago
- Fossilised faeces known as
- Coprolites
- Study co-authors
- Russell Bicknell and Julien Kimming (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany)
- Central claim
- Faecal matter distributed organic material and nutrients throughout the ocean, enabling life to boom
- Ecological effect
- Feedback loop: more poop added more nutrients, supporting more animals, which produced more poop
- Previous research focus
- Oxygen levels, food webs, and biogeochemical cycles