Highway service zone construction suspended after fossil discovery in southwest China

KUNMING -- Construction of a highway service zone in Southwest China's Yunnan province has been suspended after paleontological fossils were discovered at the site.

The fossils were discovered at the construction site of a service area in the Malong district of the city of Qujing, when a fossil collector revealed in late November that rubble at this site possibly contained fossils of ancient creatures.

The man, surnamed Yang, soon reported his suspicions to local authorities. Experts later confirmed that fossils including malungia laevigata, isoxys, naraoia, bradoriids and hyolithoid were found in the debris. These fossils date back to around 500 million years ago.

According to Liu Yu, a researcher with the Institute of Palaeontology at Yunnan University, the fossils are valuable to scientific studies, with relatively well-preserved exoskeletons found in most of the fossils.

He noted that it was not surprising to discover fossils in Malong, as Malong fauna was named after this district, which has attracted lots of researchers and fossil collectors over the years.

Yang, who started collecting fossils in 2015, said he had already found fossils with more than 1,000 intact malungia laevigata. "In some rocks there are as many as 20 such creatures," he said, adding that he is now in contact with local authorities to find a home for the fossils he collected.

Leng Tao, a manager of the highway construction project, told Xinhua that they have suspended their work at the site since the end of November. "It certainly affects construction progress, but it is significant for the protection of the paleontological fossils," he said.

Experts believe that new discoveries are possible at the site. According to the Department of Natural Resources of Yunnan, excavation efforts will be launched.