amphioxus /æmfiˈɒksəs/), consist of some 30–35 species of "fish-like" benthic
filter feeding chordates [2] in the order Amphioxiformes. They are the modern representatives of the subphylum Cephalochordata. Lancelets closely resemble, and are believed to be related to, 530-million-year-old Pikaia, fossils of which are known from the Burgess Shale. Zoologists are interested in them because they provide evolutionary insight into the origins of vertebrates. Lancelets contain many organs and organ systems that are closely related to those of modern fish, but in more primitive form. Therefore, they provide a number of examples of possible evolution exaptation.
General introduction