Name: Asaphus punctatus
Class Trilobita; Order Asaphida; Superfamily Asaphoidea; Family Asaphidae
Geological Time: Middle Ordovician; Asery Horizon
Size: 82 mm
Fossil Site: Russian trilobites, St. Petersburg region, Wolchow river, Russia
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| Name: Asaphus punctatus Class Trilobita; Order Asaphida; Superfamily Asaphoidea; Family Asaphidae Geological Time: Middle Ordovician; Asery Horizon Size: 82 mm Fossil Site: Russian trilobites, St. Petersburg region, Wolchow river, Russia
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Description:
A well-inflated example of a high-eyestalked member of the Asaphidae, this is
Asaphus punctatus. The region in which these trilobites lived was subject to dramatic
changes in salinity and turbidity, and the trilobites were able to make rapid
(geologically speaking) evolutionary adjustments. These adjustments were thought
to be able to allow them to see both predator and prey more easily. The taxon
has variable eyestalk height, with this one having higher extensions than the
norm.
