A star is born: half billion-year-old fossil rewrites the origin story of starfish Sarah Collins Wed, 09/16/2026 - 16:00 The fossilised animals, discovered in southwestern China and named Yujingia glutenotunica, are thought to be close to the last common ancestor of ambulacrarians, the modern group that includes starfish, sea stars, sea urchins and acorn worms. The international research team, including researchers from the University of Cambridge, say the fossils could also help us understand why two closely-related lineages – starfish and their relatives, and chordates, the phylum that includes humans – evolved wildly different body plans over millions of years. The results are reported in...