A fossil brachiopod (Productus) from Waulkmill Glen near Darnley.
This Productus lived on the seabed in the Carboniferous Period (360-290 million years ago), although the brachiopod phylum (ie; a grouping of species) has been around for almost 600 million years. Various kinds of brachiopods can still be found in the oceans today although they are no longer as abundant as they were in the past.
Although most creatures with two opposed hinged shells (such as cockles and mussels) are known as bivalves, brachiopods are so different internally that they belong to a separate phylum.
Reference: 1901.53.afi
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Glasgow Museums
Keywords:
brachiopods, Cambrian Period, Carboniferous Period, fossils, geology, Productus