TRILOBITE (PART OF) (MOULT) - 450 million years old - Wales
« backFOSSIL TRILOBITE (PART OF)
(MOULT)
450 million years old
Ordovician period
Gilwern Hill, Builth Wells, Wales
Trilobites are extinct arthropods, and are the oldest of all the familiar fossils. They flourished in the seas during the Ordovician period, an early division of geological time.
This fossil, from Ordovician rocks (Llanvirn Series) in Mid Wales, represents a 'moult' rather than part of a trilobite carcass. Like modern arthropods (e.g. crabs and lobsters) these segmented creatures had to shed their outer shell from time to time in order to grow.
Please note: Some photographs are taken using oblique lighting to make the fossil easier to see.
Click on a picture for a larger image
Size: 7 x 6.5 x 1.5 centimetres
Weight: 84 grams