Rare Paciphacops Trilobite and Gastropod Association

Description: Well-preserved example of a member of the Order Phacopida, Family Phacopidae, with fine preservation. This trilobite was prepared by Bob Carroll, a world-renowned preparator of Oklahoma Devonian trilobites. Others may use less care, resulting in a less desirable specimen. Many trilobites from the region were once called Paciphacops, but this one is differentiated from the genus Kainops by the smaller number of eye facets (see my other listings for examples of Kainops paymondi). It is seen in association with a small Gastropod. While the Gastropoda first emerged in the late Cambrian, it was not until the Ordovician that they radiated dramatically. The Paleozoic examples are far less common than Bivalvia. Indeed, this is the first from the Black Cat quarry that I have ever had.