Gaoloufangchaeta

{{Short description|Extinct genus of polychaete worm}}

{{Speciesbox

| name = Gaoloufangchaeta bifurcus

| fossil_range = {{fossilrange|Stage 4}}

| image = Gaoloufangchaeta_bifurcus_holotype.jpg

| image_caption = Holotype specimen

| parent_authority = Zhao, Li & Selden, 2023

| taxon = Gaoloufangchaeta bifurcus

| authority = Zhao, Li & Selden, 2023

}}

Gaoloufangchaeta is an extinct genus of polychaete worms from the Cambrian (Stage 4) Wulongqing Formation of China.{{Cite journal |last1=Zhao |first1=Jun |last2=Li |first2=Yujing |last3=Selden |first3=Paul A. |date=2023-04-26 |title=A new primitive polychaete with eyes from the lower Cambrian Guanshan biota of Yunnan Province, China |journal=Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |volume=11 |doi=10.3389/fevo.2023.1128070 |issn=2296-701X |doi-access=free |bibcode=2023FrEEv..1128070Z }} The type species is G. bifurcus. It may be a member of the Errantia annelids, implying members of the Annelida may have diverged from each other before the Cambrian. This dovetails with molecular studies recovering an Ediacaran origin of annelids.{{Cite journal |last1=Yang |first1=Xiaoyu |last2=Aguado |first2=M. Teresa |last3=Helm |first3=Conrad |last4=Zhang |first4=Zhiqian |last5=Bleidorn |first5=Christoph |date=2024-04-10 |title=New fossil of Gaoloufangchaeta advances the origin of Errantia (Annelida) to the early Cambrian |journal=Royal Society Open Science |language=en |volume=11 |issue=4 |doi=10.1098/rsos.231580 |pmid=38601033 |issn=2054-5703|pmc=11004674 |bibcode=2024RSOS...1131580Y }}

Gaoloufangchaeta had bicellular eyes and possible nuchal organs, meaning it developed strong sensory abilities.