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Beecher's Trilobite Bed is a Konservat-Lagerstätte of Late Ordovician (Caradoc) age located within the Frankfort Shale in Cleveland's Glen, Oneida County, New York, USA.〔(Martha Buck's senior thesis on the Beecher's Trilobite Bed )〕〔(Photos (and more) of trilobites from Beecher's Trilobite Bed from Yale Peabody Museum )〕 Only 3-4 centimeters thick, Beecher's Trilobite Bed has yielded numerous exceptionally preserved trilobites with the ventral anatomy and soft tissue intact, the soft tissue preserved by pyrite replacement.〔 Pyritisation allows the use of X-rays to study fine detail of preserved soft body parts still within the host rock.〔(X-ray images and 3D GIFs of preserved trilobite appendages by Amherst College )〕 Pyrite replacement of soft tissue is unusual in the fossil record; the only Lagerstätten thought to show such preservation were Beecher's Trilobite Bed, the Devonian Hunsrück Slates of Germany, and the Jurassic beds of La Voulte-sur-Rhône in France, although new locations are coming to light in New York state. == History of research == Originally discovered in 1892 by William S. Valiant, the site was thoroughly excavated from 1893 to 1895 by Charles Emerson Beecher (after whom the location is named) of Yale University, after which time the location was thought to be exhausted of fossils and excavations ceased. Beecher published three papers describing a trilobite larval form, trilobite limbs and trilobite ventral anatomy〔 from material collected from the site he established. Beecher died unexpectedly in 1904; much material, as well as details of the location, was lost. Research was subsequently limited to study of material collected during the original excavations that had been distributed to various institutions.〔 Amateur fossil collectors Tom E. Whiteley (also responsible for rediscovering the Walcott-Rust quarry) and Dan Cooper rediscovered the location in 1984 and from 1985 academic excavations and studies (re)-commenced. At least 4 other fossil bearing horizons exhibiting similar preservation have subsequently been found at the original site.〔 The small quarry at the site is currently closed to public access,〔(Forum talk regarding quarry access. )〕 being on private land〔 and administered by Yale Peabody Museum as part of ongoing research projects.〔(Yale Peabody (Briggs Laboratory) research projects. )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Beecher's Trilobite Bed」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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