2.5" Enrolled Illaenus Oculosus Trilobite - Russia

Enrolled Illaenus Oculosus Trilobite - Russia #6454

This is one of the more uncommon species of Illaenus from the St. Petersburg Region of Russia, Illaenus oculosus. It's enrolled and would be about 2 1/2 inches long if outstretched. the matrix has been sculpted to create a pedestal for it to stand on and there is an asaphid tail preserved right next to it. Really a cool piece.

Like nearly all trilobites from these quarries there is some restoration to repair shell that flakes off when the rock is broken during collection to expose the trilobites. The amount of restoration is much less on this specimen than many of the Illaenids, mostly some patches on it's head, maybe about 5%

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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