Burgess Shale
A second quarry (in the same geological formation) was opened. A thorough reassessment of the Burgess Shale showed that the fauna were much more varied and unusual than Walcott had realised. The Royal Ontario Museum now has the largest collection of Burgess Shale material in the world with over 150,000 specimens. Many of the animals present had bizarre anatomical features and only the slightest resemblance to other known animals. Examples include Opabinia, with five eyes and a snout like a vacuum cleaner hose; Nectocaris, and Hallucigenia. This last was originally reconstructed upside down, walking on its spines.