HUGE TRILOBITE MASS MORTALITY PLATE. ...

Description

HUGE TRILOBITE MASS MORTALITY PLATE
Xenasaphus devexus
Middle Ordovician
Wolchow River, Northwest Russia
Seemingly creeping and crawling across the 450 million year old rock, this tangled mass of the familiar extinct arthropod may well represent the aftermath of a mating orgy, as indicated by the large number of the same species buried together in one location. Although many of the specimens are complete - most measure around 4½ inches in length - it is interesting to note the differences in position enrollment and segment displacement. Trilobites are often found in numbers, but rarely is a "death layer" discovered with quite such a multitude; this relatively new source from northwest Russia has yielded several such plates, but few are of such impressive size, at 40 x 23¾ inches.



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