Description

Dendrocystites aff. sedgwicki
Upper Ordovician (Pusgillian)
Lower Ktaoua Formation
Tizi n-Mouri, Morocco
Very large, complete 87mm carpoid on 140mm slab.

Dendrocystites is a genus of Ordovician carpoid that had been known only from North America and Europe until it was recently reported from Morocco.

Carpoids are an extinct group considered by most paleontologists to be early echinoderms but others are betting they could be primitive chordates. Vegas says 7 to 1 in favor of then being echinoderms.

Nice specimen with good contrast against the matrix.

What is a carpoid? This article explains them (PDF)