Every Missourian should know about the crinoid; an extinct species of sea animal related to starfish. The strange alien plant like structure of this creature brought about it’s nickname “The sea lily”. Crinoids (Delocrinus missouriensis) flourished in the ocean that once covered the state around 300 million years ago, leaving behind copious fossilized remains. In 1989 crinoids became the official state fossil of Missouri due to their quantity across the state and accessibility to find. They are incredibly fascinating and even older than the Dinosaurs! The photo below is a collection of crinoids I personally found throughout rock beds in Sainte Genevieve Missouri.
To give you a better idea of how bizarre the full creature looks, I have compiled these photos of intact crinoid fossils. Special thanks to The Fossils Museum, Dr. Thomas Kammer, and Louisville Fossils for these images.
Crinoids are truly intriguing and there are still a few hundred species of them alive today. Yet the heyday of this extinct species is long over in Missouri. Now we can find their legacy scattered across the ground and enchant ourselves with their story.