Trilobite
Extinct sea crawler
Trilobites are extinct marine arthropods that dominated ancient seas for nearly 300 million years.
Their fossils are among the most recognizable: a segmented body divided lengthwise into three lobes, with a distinctive head shield and compound eyes.
Trilobites ranged from a few millimeters to over two feet long and disappeared in the mass extinction that ended the Permian period.
The beach was littered with trilobite fossils.
Preserved ancient organism
- CambrianEarliest Paleozoic period
- OrdovicianPaleozoic geological period
- PaleozoicEarly complex-life epoch
- extinctionComplete vanishing of a species
Permian · evolution · specimen · marine · ancient · sedimentary · preservation · stratigraphy
External skeletal structure
- thoraxCentral body cavity
- segmentsSeparate parts of something
- compound eyesMulti-lensed visual organs
- pleuraMembrane around lungs
glabella · carapace · antennae · calcite · molting · articulation · spines · lobes
Individual for examination
- matrixOrdered numerical arrangement
- preparationArranging things in advance
- displayPresentation for viewing
- cabinetEnclosed storage furniture
locality · rare · dealer · auction · replica · cleaning · mounting · label
Finest taxonomic rank
- genusTaxonomic rank above species
- familyRelated people together
- orderMethodical arrangement or request
- classificationSystematic grouping by traits
clade · phylogeny · nomenclature · description · morphology · variation · suborder · systematic
fossil
Preserved ancient organism
- CambrianEarliest Paleozoic period
- OrdovicianPaleozoic geological period
- PaleozoicEarly complex-life epoch
extinction · Permian · evolution · specimen · marine · ancient · sedimentary · preservation · stratigraphy · arthropod
exoskeleton
External skeletal structure
- thoraxCentral body cavity
- segmentsSeparate parts of something
- compound eyesMulti-lensed visual organs
pleura · glabella · carapace · antennae · calcite · molting · articulation · spines · lobes · appendages
specimen
Individual for examination
- matrixOrdered numerical arrangement
- preparationArranging things in advance
- displayPresentation for viewing
cabinet · locality · rare · dealer · auction · replica · cleaning · mounting · label · provenance
species
Finest taxonomic rank
- genusTaxonomic rank above species
- familyRelated people together
- orderMethodical arrangement or request
classification · clade · phylogeny · nomenclature · description · morphology · variation · suborder · systematic · diversity
Trilobitehorseshoe crab
Spike-tailed marine arthropod
living fossil · cockroach · coelacanth · nautilus · human
Trilobitecrustacean
Aquatic arthropod with exoskeleton
insect · arachnid · horseshoe crab · lobster · crab