3" Walliserops Trilobite With Barrandeops - Foum Zguid, Morocco

This is a beautifully prepared association of a Walliserops trilobite and a partially enrolled Barrandeops. It is not one of the more common Walliserops trifurcatus but rather a rarer variation which has much longer spines and a shorter fork.
The Walliserops would have been about 3" long if outstretched including it's distinctive trident shaped rostrum. It has over 40 free standing spines, as well as the spines on it's tail having been prepared completely free of the surrounding rock. The Barrandeops would be about 1.6" long if outstretched and is located just behind the tail of the Walliserops.
Excellent preparation on this piece, which would have taken around 40 hours under microscope using air abrasives and air scribes.
Walliserops is one of the weirdest, and most visually stunning species of trilobite, Walliserops trifurcatus. There is some debate about the purpose of the trident shaped appendage or rostrum coming off the front of it's head but it's likely it could have either had sensory purposes or have been used to stir up the mud while looking for food.
<image image_id="506" align="right" width="600" height="400">A photo of the quarry at Foum Zguid. The Walliserops come out of the very bottom layer, which requires 1-2 meters of limestone overburden to be removed.</image>