MID-DEVONIAN BRACHIOPOD Spirifer granulosa (Conrad)
This speciman is a singular example of a complete internal mold of a brachiopod belonging to the group Spiriferida, all with a characteristic "spirifer" shape with wide extensions on their shells, earning them the nickname "angelwings" of "butterfly" brachiopods. Landlocked seas of the Paleozoic provided vast areas in which the water was rarely deeper than 600 feet and commonly less than 150. There brachiopods found light, placid water and almost incredible supplies of food, and crowded onto banks and reefs as slosely as blue mussels do on modern shores.

IVFP # 062100