"Unraveling the Ancient Art of Trilobite Ball Curling"

Fossils of trilobites found in central New York's Walcott-Rust Quarry have provided new insights into how these ancient arthropods curled up for defense. The fossils, which date back 450 million years, revealed the interlocking anatomy of a rolled-up trilobite for the first time. The researchers used micro-CT scans and thin sections from the 1870s to analyze the inner anatomy of the fossil, showing that the trilobite's stomach plates and appendages played central roles in the rolling-up process. The study also found similarities between the rolling mechanisms of trilobites and those of modern arthropods like pill bugs and millipedes, demonstrating convergent evolution.