The word trilobite comes from the Greek word treislobos, meaning three lobed one. The three lobes run parallel to the axis of the trilobite, or length of the body. Some trilobites were burrowing trilobites, while others could swim and crawl. All are considered scavengers who ate mud, seaweed, and algae for food. All trilobites molted or shed their shells as they grew. The hard shell is called the exoskeleton. The segmented exoskeleton allowed the trilobite to roll up into a ball to protect it's soft underside from predators. A pair of jointed legs attached to each body segment, allowed the trilobite easy mobility on a soft muddy sea floor. Some trilobites had spines, adding protection, buoyancy, and beauty to this three lobed arthropod.
The growth of the trilobite occures in three stages. The earliest being the Protaspis stage (larval). (1.) The second stage, Meraspis, developes a head, tail, and body segments. (2.) Now adding a single body segment each time it molts. (3.) The body grows larger with each molt until all segments are developed. This stage is called Holaspis (4.) These rare pictures are of the the species Isotelus maximus.
