1.45" Eocene Fossil Crab (Pulalius) - Washington State

This is a nicely prepared example of the Late Eocene aged fossil crab Pulalius vulgaris. These crabs are found within hard concretions (a mass of rock that forms around organic manner) that erode out of the Lincoln Creek Formation, which must be broken open to find the crab. The crab must then be prepared from the hard concretion using mechanical tools, a very time consuming process.

There is a repaired crack through the left pincer of the crab where the nodule was split during collection.

Below is an example of a Pulalius vulgaris crab in its concretion after having been broken open with a sledge hammer, prior to preparation.