spiny trilobite
Odontopleura sp.
Silurian427.4–419.2 Ma
- Catalogue
- FA-0331
- Phylum
- Arthropoda
- Class
- Trilobita
- Order
- Odontopleurida
- Family
- Odontopleuridae
- Locality
- Yass district, New South Wales
- Unit
- not recorded
- Age
- Late Silurian (Ludlow–Přídolí)
427.4–419.2 Ma - Reference
- Wikipedia
Odontopleurids are the most extravagantly spined of all trilobites, fringed with long marginal spines and carrying paired spines along the axis. The spines probably spread the animal's weight on soft sea floor and made it awkward to swallow.
Complete specimens are uncommon: the spines snap off easily, both before burial and during collection.