(Image and story provided by the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, & Parks newsletter)
Four new species and seven new genera of ancient crustaceans have been discovered in Mississippi. At least a dozen fossil collectors aided in this effort over a period of ten years. MDWFP Paleontology Curator George Phillips has recently submitted a publication to the German scientific journal, Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie, to make the discovery official.
“The new species of crustaceans represent a diversity that is unmatched in any location in the Eastern U.S.,” said George. “For this time period, the cretaceous period, this is one of the highest diversities of crustaceans ever documented in the fossil record in North America.”
