An American boy, aged six, found a rare fossil of a marine creature that lived hundreds of millions of years ago at Schram Park in Nebraska, in a discovery considered one of the few recorded cases of this creature in the state in over 55 years.
The American magazine People reported the day before yesterday, citing the Nebraska State Parks and Wildlife Department, that the boy, Leo Youngdale, found the fossil during an exploratory event at the park, after turning over a rock he hoped would contain another fossil underneath.
Experts explained that the fossil belongs to an ancient marine creature known as a "conulariid," which lived approximately 200 to 500 million years ago. It resembles a jellyfish in shape, with an inverted pyramid-like body. Fossils of this creature are rare due to the softness of its body and the fragility of its structure, making the preservation of its traces in rocks uncommon.
According to experts, the discovered fossil was about seven centimeters long. They identified it through a distinctive imprint resembling wavy fish bones left by the creature in the limestone.
Specialists noted that other known fossils of this creature in Nebraska were found more than 55 years ago in two areas of the state, giving the new discovery local scientific significance.
The fossil is scheduled to be kept at Schram Park for use in educational activities and to introduce visitors to the marine creatures that lived in the area during ancient geological eras.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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