A team of scientists have discovered the 'ash-encrusted' remains of a prehistoric creature in Morocco, later identified as the most pristine specimen of a trilobite arthropod.
The study revealed that the creature, dubbed "Pompeii", was instantly petrified in seawater by hot ash from a nearby volcano, in a fate that mimics what happened to creatures in the Italian city of Pompeii during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 76 AD.
While more than 20,000 species of trilobites have been discovered, scientists have only found soft tissue, but the latest discovery includes everything from the digestive system to the hair-like structures that extend along the appendages.
Dr Greg Edgecombe, a paleontologist at the Natural History Museum, said: “One unexpected result of our work is the discovery that volcanic ash in shallow marine environments can be a wealth of exceptional fossil preservation.”
The ash cake was collected in the High Atlas, the highest peak in the Atlas Mountain range in central Morocco.
The ash preserved the entire body of the trilobite, filling its digestive tract, allowing scientists to analyze it for the first time.
It was previously thought that trilobites had 3 pairs of head appendages behind the long antennae, but the new species revealed the presence of 4 pairs.
Lead author, Professor Abdul Razzaq Al-Albani, said: “As a scientist who has worked on fossils from different eras and sites, discovering fossils in such a wonderful state of preservation within a volcanic environment was a very exhilarating experience for me. I believe that lava deposits should become new targets.” "For the study, due to its exceptional ability to preserve biological remains, including delicate soft tissues, these results are expected to lead to important discoveries about the evolution of life on our planet Earth."
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