CRINOID 1 Because many crinoids resemble flowers, with their cluster of waving arms & long stem, they are sometimes called sea lilies. But crinoids are not plants. Like their relatives--starfishes, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, and brittle stars--crinoids are echinoderms, animals with rough, spiny surfaces and a special kind of radial symmetry based on five or multiples of five.
Crinoids have had a long and successful history on earth since at least the beginning of the Ordovician Period, roughly 490 million years ago. Experts have identified hundreds of different crinoid species. Rarely are crinoids preserved in their entirety as this fine specimen shows: once the soft parts of the animal decayed, sea currents generally scattered the skeletal segments.
This rare piece discovered in Australia measures 5"x 5" and is 1.5" thick overall. It shows fantastic detail!
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