Exceptional discovery: a 515 million year old marine Pompeii in Morocco

An international team of researchers led by Abderrazak El Albani, professor of Geology, Sedimentology and Biogeochemistry at the University of Poitiers, has discovered a marine Pompeii dating back 515 million years in Morocco.

Another important discovery in Morocco. International researchers have discovered two new species of trilobites. These are the best-preserved trilobite fossils ever discovered, displaying previously unseen anatomical details despite the millions of trilobites collected and studied over the past two centuries. “These fossil arthropods found petrified in their last posture are representatives of an ecosystem 515 million years old (Ma), a marine “Pompeii”, discovered in levels of volcanic ash, in Aït Youb, in the region of Souss-Massa in Morocco,” says Professor Abderrazak El Albani, co-author of the study in an article published on The conversationHe was keen to point out that with more than 22,000 species discovered, trilobites are probably the best-known fossil invertebrates.