Micromacro Fossils

FO1002: Conocoryphe sulzeri, Jince formation, Czechoslovakia. Pete Lawrance collection. Although eyes are normally an extremely important survival feature, there are situations under which loss of eyes might occur. For example, trilobites that took advantage of deep-water benthic (bottom-feeding) habitats where light was dim or lacking might have gradually lost their eyes without suffering an adaptive disadvantage. Such eyeless trilobite assemblages are called atheloptic.