Trilobite

Type Species: (There are various species in this Class)

Pronunciation: Trie-low-bite

Meaning: Three Lobes

Geological Layer: (Pre-)Cambrian-Permian

Baramin: Trilobite?

Habitat: Shallow, hot-sea reefs

Era: Pre-Fall-Flood, 6,000-4,350 years ago

Pre-Fall Diet: Plants

Post-Fall Diet: (Depending on species) Bottom-feeder, predatory, scavenger or filter-feeder

Length: (Depending on species) 6mm to 3 ft.

Height: N/A

Weight: N/A

Description:

Trilobites came in many different forms and sizes, but all according to their baramins – meaning they reproduced after their own kind. They somewhat resembled crabs and a strange modern-day animal known as the horseshoe crab, which isn't related to crabs at all! They had touch armor plating along their backs called a “shell”; the shell was formed from many segments, kind of like a knight's armor. This made it both flexible and durable.

History:

The class “trilobite” was coined in 1771 by Johann Ernst Immanuel Walch.

Taxonomy:

There were over 17,000 different species of these armored animals. They all varied in size and are found throughout the fossil record. It is unknown if they're all in the same baramin or not.

Paleobiology:

Many species of trilobites were bottom-feeders, eating practically anything they could find on the seafloor – like many crabs. Others on the other hand, swam through the ocean as filter-feeders, sustaining themselves on plankton.

Trilobites were a very numerous group of animals and are found in many fossil records dating to the Flood of Noah's time. But they weren't without their predators: Anomalocaris often preyed upon trilobites using their front appendages. To protect themselves, trilobites had tough shells and compound eyes to see predators approaching.

The shell of a trilobite is made up of multiple segments. On the thorax (the part between the head and the tail), there could be anywhere from two to more than 40 segments depending on the species and up to 30 on the tail. Like modern arthropods (such as insects and spiders), trilobites molted every so often – they'd bust out of their outer layer of shell while the one underneath is still soft and can expand. This is how arthropods grow larger.

Extinction:

The Bible says that Noah only took land animals on the ark, so trilobites would not have been included. They probably went extinct during the onslaught of the Flood, 4,350 years ago.

Popular Culture:

Despite appearing in numerous books, trilobites aren't very well known. They've made their appearance in several documentaries such as Chased by Sea Monsters (2003), Animal Armageddon (2009), and Walking with Monsters (2005).

Image Gallery:

Various trilobite fossils

A trilobite fossil

A trilobite sifting through sand on the ocean floor looking for food