Description

Duslia sp.
Ordovician
Kataoua Formation
Mecissi, Anti-Atlas Mountains, Morocco

92mm soft-bodied arthropod on 103mm slab. An especially fine example from an academic collection. Rare

Duslia is an enigmatic genus of soft-bodied arthropods from the Ordovician period, primarily found in what is now the Czech Republic and Morocco. Duslia insignis is the most well-known species within this genus. Initially misclassified as a type of polyplacophoran, Duslia has since been identified as a trilobate arthropod with similarities to trilobites but is not considered a true trilobite.

Duslia is characterized by its segmented body, blind eyes, and fine, hook-like protrusions around its edges. It lived in nearshore shallow marine environments, probably burrowing in sandy substrates near the sediment-water interface. The exact classification of Duslia remains debated, but it is currently placed in the superclass Arachnomorpha, order Cheloniellida, which is a catch-all category for similar prehistoric arthropods​

See: Wikipedia – Cheloniellida (Opens in new tab)