Explore this animal in Size of Extinct Animals ↗
433 / Paleozoic
Olenellus thompsoni
Olenellus thompsoni
A broad head, long genal spines and many trunk segments marked an early trilobite radiation.
View original image · 1600 × 1067- Time range
- About 518 million years ago
- Final stage
- Early Cambrian
- Geographic range
- Shallow shelf sea · North America
01 / DEFINITION & ECOLOGY
What was Olenellus thompsoni?
Olenellus thompsoni (Olenellus thompsoni) was an extinct organism known from About 518 million years ago, with a range in Shallow shelf sea · North America.
Life and ecology
It crawled oxygenated seafloors and consumed detritus or small benthic animals.
02 / DISAPPEARANCE
Why did Olenellus thompsoni disappear?
Olenellids disappeared during the turnover at the end of the Early Cambrian; the causes of that turnover are still debated.
03 / EVIDENCE
How do scientists know about Olenellus thompsoni?
Complete exoskeletons, molts and growth sequences document development.
04 / SOURCES & FURTHER READING
Check the source record
Use the scientific name to compare taxonomy, occurrence records and the fossil record. Database coverage and classifications may differ.
05 / REVISION HISTORY
How has this record changed?
- Rewrote an extinction cause that presented environmental or faunal turnover as established; it is now given as context the record does not prove.
- Verified authoritative entity sources and added three responsive reconstruction sizes.
- Initial bilingual species record published.
06 / CORRECTIONS & ADDITIONS