2.2" Ventral, Stalk-Eyed Asaphus Kowalewskii Trilobite - Russia

Ventral, Stalk-Eyed Asaphus Kowalewskii Trilobite - Russia #191010

This is a 2.2" long, ventrally prepared, stalk-eyed trilobite (Asaphus kowalewskii). It is Middle Ordovician in age and was collected at the Vilpovitsy quarry in the St. Petersburg region of Russia. It was found upside down on the surface of the rock and has been prepared that way. The hypostome (mouthplate) is exposed as well as the tops of two of the stalk eyes. A really unique preparation.

Photo of the Vilpovitsy quarry near St. Petersburg, Russia, where this trilobite was found.

Trilobites were a very diverse group of extinct marine arthropods. They first appeared in the fossil record in the Early Cambrian (521 million years ago) and went extinct during the Permian mass extinction (250 million years ago). They were one of the most successful of the early animals on our planet: over 25,000 species have been described, filling nearly every evolutionary niche. Due in large part to their hard exoskeletons (shells), they left an excellent fossil record.

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