Fullux Posted May 22, 2023 Share Posted May 22, 2023 I've been fascinated with Aegirocassis for a while now. The fact that a complex, giant filter feeder occured so many millions of years ago astonishes me. Its just such an alien animal. I've found little fragments of arthropod molts in the Drakes formation which belong to Isotelus. That got me wondering. What are the chances that instead of these all being from isotelus, that they're instead from another arthropod such as a eurypterid or ordovician radiodont. Another question I have is, does aegirocassis or a radiodont related to aegirocassis occur in any places other than morocco. The Drakes formation seems to have experienced a submarine landslide (don't quote me on this) and most to all of the fossils there are of creatures that were overtaken by said landslide. (Not entirely sure if this is true) But, what if there were such radiodonts like aegirocassis living in the Drakes formation but the only fossils we would find of them is molt fragments like the ones I've found that fell off of the animal and were buried in the sediment, instead of whole body fossils because they were able to escape this landslide. Though, I suppose the only way to confirm that such a radiodont lived in the Drakes would be to find an actual fossilized corpse of one. Really I just think this is a fun idea but it definitely would be cool if it is true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted May 22, 2023 Share Posted May 22, 2023 The genus is currently only known from Morocco, but the family is known from several places. But they are only found in lagerstatten, places of unusual and extraordinary preservation of soft parts, as most of these animals are not very hard. They probably existed all over the world, but without soft-bodied preservation, we'll never know for sure. Your clearly hard bits preseved in the Late Ordovician are not radiodonts. Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fullux Posted May 22, 2023 Author Share Posted May 22, 2023 7 minutes ago, Tidgy's Dad said: The genus is currently only known from Morocco, but the family is known from several places. But they are only found in lagerstatten, places of unusual and extraordinary preservation of soft parts, as most of these animals are not very hard. They probably existed all over the world, but without soft-bodied preservation, we'll never know for sure. Your clearly hard bits preseved in the Late Ordovician are not radiodonts. Yes, that's what I was expecting, but it's always fun to speculate. But what are the chances of these being from a eurypterid? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted May 22, 2023 Share Posted May 22, 2023 Just now, Fullux said: Yes, that's what I was expecting, but it's always fun to speculate. But what are the chances of these being from a eurypterid? Shouldn't think so. Are they reported from the Drakes ? Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fullux Posted May 22, 2023 Author Share Posted May 22, 2023 40 minutes ago, Tidgy's Dad said: Shouldn't think so. Are they reported from the Drakes ? Yes, found one of them earlier today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilNerd Posted May 22, 2023 Share Posted May 22, 2023 2 minutes ago, Fullux said: Yes, found one of them earlier today. You found a eurypterid earlier today or found mention of them being reported in the Drakes Formation? 1 The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it. -Neil deGrasse Tyson Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don't. -Bill Nye (The Science Guy) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fullux Posted May 22, 2023 Author Share Posted May 22, 2023 1 hour ago, FossilNerd said: You found a eurypterid earlier today or found mention of them being reported in the Drakes Formation? No, I found one of the fragments earlier today. Sorry, should've given more context! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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