Rare Tower Eyed Erbenochile Trilobite - 2.15"

This a rare, tower-eye, Erbenochile issoumourensis trilobite from Foum zeguid, Morocco. This species has extraordinarily large eyes containing over 400 eye facets. The massive eyes allow full 360 degree coverage in the horizontal plane and were high enough to allow the trilobite to see backwards over its thorax.

There are two known species of Erbenochile and Erbenochile issoumourensis is distinguished from Erbenochile erbeni by several key features. Issoumourensis has a smaller number of eye facets, it does not have an "eye shade" extending laterally from the to of it's eyes, the spines of shorter, and the cephalon rounded triangular and without tubercles.

This nicely prepared specimen is 2.15" in length and laid out prone which is unusual as most specimens have been found slightly arched.

Please note that the right eye is a composite. It was damaged during collection so it was replaced with an eye from another isolated Erbenochile head.