Crinoid Fossil Plate Specimen C

Crinoid, Scyphocrinites ElegansDevonian, 419-359 million years oldMiddle Atlas Mtns near Erfoud, MoroccoThis fossil has been repaired. See below for details This fossil crinoid plate is a Scyphocrinites Elegans, an extinct crinoid found in Morocco. Crinoids are fascinating examples of our oceans mysterious past and, perhaps, one of the more intriguing fossils we carry.  Because many crinoids resemble flowers, with their cluster of waving arms atop a long stem, they’ve been nicknamed “sea lilies”. But crinoids are not plants. They are members of a phylum of sea creatures known as Echinodermata, which means "spiny skin." Other examples of non-extinct echinoderms include sea urchins, sand dollars, sea cucumbers, and starfish. Like their modern day living relatives, crinoids lived on the ancient sea floor filtering the water for their food. Crinoids emerged in the fossil record over 541,000,000 years ago which, when you really think about it, is an insanely long time ago. The Syphocrinites