Name: Regulaecystis pleurocystoides (cystoid)
Phylum Echninodermata; Subphylum Blastozoa; Class Cystoidea; Rhombifera
Geological Time: Lower Devonian Seigenian/Emsian Stage
Size: 40 mm by 8 mm on a 95 by 90 mm matrix
Fossil Site: Hunsruck Slate, Bundenbach Germany
 Well-preserved
example of a rarely-seen cystoid known as Regulaecystis pleurocystoides.
Cystoids are also termed Rhombifera, a reference to the rhobohedral
arrangement of pores on the calyx. The Hunsruck slate is famous for
its fossils, many of which have pyritization present. Rapid burial
and pyritization was what led to the many wonderful examples of early
Devonian life from the region. The mudstones were metamorphosed into
slate during the Carboniferous.
The slate was quarried for roofing tiles, and the quarrymen would
save the fossils for later sale. Now that the quarries are no longer
open, future supplies of these wonderfully-preserved benthic organisms
will only come from existing collections. Notice the fine details
and the pyrite highlights, making this a spectacular example of so
rare a specimen. |
