Trilobites – Butterflies of the Seas.
Trilobites were once so common that the Cambrian Period was known as The Age of Trilobites. There are over 20,000 different species of trilobite that have been discovered so far and more species are being discovered every year. They are one of the most diverse and plentiful of the ancient paleozoic creatures. When the Dalmanites and Arctinurus trilobites were found in the deposits of the Rochester shale while digging the Erie Canal, many called these creatures “Butterflies of the Seas” as some of the disarticulated pygidia (Tail sections) looked like the wings of butterflies.