Opabinia

Opabinia is a fossil animal found in Cambrian fossil deposits. Its sole species, Opabinia regalis, is known from the Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale of British Columbia. The discoverer of Opabinia, Charles Doolittle Walcott, named it after a local mountain, Opabin Peak in the Canadian Rockies. Thirty specimens of Opabinia are known and each ranges in size from 40 to 70 mm. The most intriguing feature of Opabinia are its five eyes found on the dorsal surface of the head. These eyes were used to search for food. Because of its flexible body it is not known whether Opabinia was pelagic or benthic.