Radiocyatha

Radiocyatha is an extinct group of sponge-like animals which lived in the early to mid-Cambrian Period (Tommotian to Toyonian).

They were very similar to archaeocyath sponges, with a cup-shaped calcareous body up to 20 cm (7.9 inches) in height.

One major difference is that the radiocyath skeleton is not composed of tiny calcite grains, but rather large aragonite plates, known as nesasters.

Uranosphaera is a simple single-walled radiocyath, while the hetairacyathids bear an additional nested wall layer, akin to archaeocyaths.

[1] Radiocyaths reached their maximum abundance in the Atdabanian and Botomian, contributing towards the biomass of archaeocyath sponge reefs in regions such as Mongolia and Australia.