By Joseph “PaleoJoe” Kchodl
GREENOPS boothi can be found in several parts of Michigan, New York, and Ontario, Canada. This Devonian trilobite is very showy with all the spikes and spines it has on its body. The long and broad genal spines help us to identify it.
Characteristics include a furrowed glabella and high, crescent-shaped eyes. The segments of the thorax end in short spines, and the pygidium (or tail section) have reward pointing spines.
Along with all other trilobites, GREENOPS boothi had the ability to enroll, or roll into a ball. One can imagine this trilobite having good protection from being eaten by a passing fish.
The example shown here is slightly disarticulated, possibly due to the weight of overlying sediments during fossilization.
DID YOU KNOW: Trilobites, an extinct form of arthropod related to insects, crabs, crayfish, and horseshoe crabs, are among the most prevalent invertebrates with hard body parts to appear during the Cambrian Period. These creatures are called trilobite due to the three distinct “lobes” running vertically through the body section.
About the columnist: Joseph “PaleoJoe” Kchodl is a paleontologist, educator, veteran, author, fossil dig organizer/guide, business owner, husband, father, and grandfather, and fossil fanatic. For decades, he’s spent hours in classrooms around the Midwestern United States and beyond, speaking to school children about fossils and fossil hunting. Visit his site to purchase fossils, contact PaleoJoe, visit www.paleojoe.com.
Plus, learn more about PaleoJoe and his daughter PaleoJen and their paleontology exploration partnership in an the article “Fueling a Passion for Paleontology“.
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