Appendage morphology of the trilobite Cryptolithus and its implications

The appendages of the Ordovician trilobite Cryptolithus tesselatus are restudied, and particular reference is made to the exite branch. Details formerly borrowed from Triarthrus to complete the reconstruction of the appendages of Cryptolithus are now found in part to be significantly different in the two trilobites. The exite ‘filaments’ of Cryptolithus evidently are strong spines that pointed ventrally and may have been used to stir up deposited mud. The broadened view of trilobite appendages indicates that some trace fossils (Cruziana semiplicata type) may be interpreted as being partly made by the exites, while others (C. rugosa type) are perhaps made exclusively by the exites.