DOUBLE-SIDED CRINOID MASS MORTALITY PLAQUE
Jimbacrinu bostocki
Lower Permian, Artinskian stage
Cundelo Formation, Gascoyne Junction, Northern Territories, Australia
Crinoids look as though they must be a strange form of plant life, but in fact they are animals, an echinoderm related to star fish and sea urchins. These highly unusual creatures still exist in our oceans today, making them one of the few "living fossils". They filter tiny marine life through their "flowering" coronae, whilst attached to the sea bed or, sometimes, floating driftwood, and will often be found in communities like expansive, gently waving meadows beneath the water. This fine plaque contains 16 complete or near-complete specimens, 10 on one side and six on the other, in a fine state of three-dimensional preservation so detailed that one can even make out the tiny cirri lining the pinnules, or arms, with which they grabbed hold of passing food. Presented to stand upright, it measures approximately 12 x 10 inches overall, a fine and aesthetic specimen.