Part of a series of articles titled Grand Canyon Collections—Paleontology.
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Trilobite
Marine Fossil
Scientific Name: Dolichometopus productus
This specimen was collected in 1930 from the Cambrian-aged Bright Angel Shale (506 million years ago). It was likely a detritovore that crawled along the seafloor in search of dead organic material to eat. Trilobites were some of the first complex animals to appear in the fossil record and were extremely successful during their time. They existed in the oceans for more than 300 million years, and 20,000 different species have been found. Trilobites eventually went extinct in the great Permian mass extinction 252 million years ago. Trilobites are arthropods, meaning they are related to insects, spiders, and crustaceans.
3D Trilobite—Dolichometopus productus
Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
A 3D model. This model shows a rock with a trilobite fossil on the surface. The model can be rotated and tilted using a computer interface.
Species: Dolichometopus productus
Collected from the Bright Angel Shale in Grand Canyon National Park.
This fossil is in the collections at Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Learn about paleontology in the National Park Service: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/fossils/index.htm
Learn more about Grand Canyon National Park’s Centennial: https://www.nps.gov/grca/getinvolved/centennial.htm
Last updated: May 3, 2021