Charniodiscus was first found in Charnwood Forest in England, and named by Trevor D. Ford in 1958. The name is derived from the fact that Ford only described a holdfast consisting of a double concentic circle, his species being named Charniodiscus concentricus. Later it was discovered that a frond (Charnia masoni) was part of a closely related organism. Charnia differs in the branching structure in the frond. Charniodiscus specimens are known from across the globe dating to around 565 to 555 million years ago.