Extremely Rare fossil bigest know Arthroplura species Arthropleura mammata !

Description

My specimens are genuine and will be delivered with a Certificate of authenticity, age and origin and scientific works copy described this species !
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Specimen:
Extremely rare , beautiful
Arthropleura mammata
SALTER 1863
Bigest know Arthroplura species reach more than 3m
!
Locality:
All detailed data will be provided with the specimen
Stratigraphy:
Upper Carboniferous – Pennsylvanian -  Namurian B - Siodlowe beds
Age:
ca. 305
Mya
Matrix dimensions:
ca. 11,5 x 7,5 x 3,5 cm ( white square on last picture is 1,0 x 1,0 cm )
Description:
Very beautiful and extremely rare Arthroplura species:
Arthropleura mammata
SALTER 1863
was the largest know species reach more than 3m of and was a
biggest arthropod of all time !!!  ( Positive and negative )
The most know Arthropleura species are european
Arthropleura armata
Jordan 1854
and
Arthropleura cristata
Richardson
1959 know from Mazon Creek.
Arthropleura
(Greek
for
jointed ribs
) is a genus of extinct
millipede
arthropods
that lived in what is now North America
and Europe
around 345 to 290
million years ago
, from the
Viséan
stage of the lower Carboniferous period
to the
Sakmarian
stage of the lower
Permian Period
. The species of the genus are the largest known land
invertebrates
of all time, and would have had few, if any, predators.
A. armata
grew to be 2.5 metres (8 ft 2 in) long.
Tracks
from
Arthropleura
up to 50 centimetres (20 in) wide have been found at
Joggins, Nova Scotia
. In 2021 a fossil was reported, probably a shed
exoskeleton
(
exuviae
) of an
Arthropleura
with an estimated width of 55 centimetres (22 in), length of 1.9 metres (6 ft 3 in) to 2.63 metres (8 ft 8 in) and body mass of 50 kg (110 lb).
Arthropleura
was able to grow larger than modern arthropods, partly because of the greater
partial pressure
of
oxygen
in
Earth's atmosphere
at that time and partly because of the lack of large
terrestria
l
vertebrate
predators
.
Arthropleura
is characterized by a series of well-developed
tergites
(dorsal
exoskeleton
) having three lobes like a
trilobite
, with dorsal surfaces covered by many tubercles. The head is almost unknown, as the anterior oval plate in front of the first trilobate tergite, which previous thought to be head shield, were considered to be a collum (first tergite of millipede trunk) by subsequent studies.
Based on the discovery from other arthropleurids (
Microdecemplex
), the head may have had non-filamentous
antennae
and trumpet-like organs. It is estimated that
Arthropleura
had a trilobate tergite number ranging from 28 to 32. The alignment between leg and tergite is not well understood, but at least it is believed to have been diplopodous in some degree: two pairs of legs per tergite, like modern millipede. Alongside the median
sternite
, there were three pairs of ventral plates located around each leg pair, namely K-, B- and rosette plates, and either the B- or K-plates were thought to be
respiratory organs
. The body terminated with a trapezoidal
telson
.
All found fossils of
Arthropleura
are believed to be
exuviae
(
molting
shells) instead of
carcasses
. The good preservation of its thin exuviae, buttressing plates around the leg base, and evidence of 3 cm deep
trackway fossils
(namely the
ichnotaxon
Diplichnites
cuithensis
altogether suggests that they had a sturdy
exoskeleton
and roamed the land.
Arthropleura
was once thought to have lived mainly in
coal forests
.
[8]
However, it probably lived a forest-independent life, as fossils of the trackway were found in more open areas and fossils were found even after the
Carboniferous rainforest collapse
.There is no solid evidence for the diet of
Arthropleura
, as the fossils that were once considered
coprolites
, including
lycopod
fragments and
pteridophyte
spores
,
are later considered to be merely coexistence of plant fossils and exuvia remains.
Nonetheless, the interpretation of a
herbivorous
diet is still accepted, and it is estimated that
Arthropleura
may have eaten not only spores but also
fruits
,
sporophylls
and
seeds
, based on its enormous size that possibly required lots of nutrition.
Arthropleura
specimens are found in the upper Paleozoic sediments - but only isolated armour segments in pieces. Whole specimens are extremely rare. Arthropleuridea was a class of arthropods that flourished during the Carboniferous period. Members are defined by diplosomy, paranotal tergal lobes separated from the axis by a suture, and by sclerotized plates buttressing the leg insertions. Despite their unique features, recent phylogenetic research suggests that Arthropleuridea may be included among millipedes.
The class contains three recognized orders, each with a single genus. Arthropleurids had about 30 pairs of legs, whose tracks have been found in the Joggins deposit in Nova Scotia, Canada. Arthropleuridea is most famous for order Arthropleurida. With the genus
Arthropleura
over 2 meters in length, arthropleurids are among the largest arthropods ever to have lived. The lack of large terrestrial vertebrate predators and the highly oxygenic atmosphere at that time probably enabled them to grow so large. Arthropleurids lived in the moist coal swamps that were common at the time and may have burrowed in the undergrowth. They were either herbivores or detritivores. Besides their size, their most distinguishing features were their legs with eight segments (as many as 30 pairs) and extremely tough exoskeletons. There is no evidence of spiracles, so the animals must have used lungs or gills for respiration. Arthropleurids became extinct as the climate became drier and the coal swamps dried out. Tracks from
Arthropleura
up to 50 cm wide have been found at Joggins, Nova Scotia. Most arthropleurids are thought to have been terrestrial, although, without any known respiratory structure, terrestriality is assumed only by analogy to modern arthropods. Early forms, however, including order Eoarthropleurida, appear to have been aquatic. For this reason, some question Arthropleuridea's inclusion among millipedes because no modern aquatic myriapods are known. Eoarthropleurida has been found from the Upper Silurian through the Upper Devonian of Europe and North America.
An amazing opportunity to get something extremely rare ... that not happen again !
Systematic:
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Subphylum:
Myriapoda
Class:
Arthropleuridea
Order:
Arthropleurida
Family:
Arthropleuridae
Genus:
Arthropleura
Species:
Arthropleura
sp.