Traumatocrinus Crinoid Fossil Slab - Sea Lily - Guanling Guizhou China

A complete Traumatocrinus crinoid fossil, preserved on a black shale slab from the Xiaowa Formation near Guanling, Guizhou Province, China. This deposit dates to the early Late Triassic (Carnian, roughly 235 million years old) and is one of the most significant fossil sites in the world for its combination of marine reptiles and pelagic crinoids preserved in exceptional detail.

Unlike most crinoids, which anchor to the seafloor, Traumatocrinus was pseudoplanktonic - it lived attached to floating driftwood and drifted through the ancient Palaeo-Tethys Ocean rather than staying fixed to the bottom.

This specimen shows a well-defined crown (calyx) with radiating, feather-textured arms connected to a long, fully articulated stem made up of hundreds of individual disc-shaped columnals, still traceable from crown to base.

The specimen has been stabilized and assembled from its natural sections, a common and accepted practice for crinoid fossils given their delicate, segmented structure. This preserves the piece in its most complete and displayable form.

Preserved in fine dark grey shale with strong contrast between fossil and matrix. Penny included for scale (not included with purchase).

Formation: Xiaowa Formation | Age: Late Triassic (Carnian), ~235 million years old | Locality: Guanling, Guizhou Province, China | Class: Crinoidea | Assembled/stabilized from natural fossil sections