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2023 INVERTEBRATE/PLANT FOSSIL OF THE YEAR (IPFOTY) The winner of the 2023 IPFOTY goes to... Cryptolithus tessellatus trilobites and unknown starfish - Ordovician, Trenton Group - Central Pennsylvania Congratulations to @KompsFossilsNMinerals !!!

Here we are with our 2023 IPFOTY contest entries. These are all 12 of our IPFOTM winners from 2023, listed in the order of the month they won. Carefully review these entries and vote for the one you think deserves the title of 2023 Invertebrate / Plant Fossil Of The Year! Poll closes on the 25th of January just before midnight. You can also vote for the 2023 Vertebrate Fossil Of The Year contest HERE. 1. Ameura missouriensis trilobite - Pennsylvanian, Deer Creek Fm - Missouri 2. Hammatoceras sp ammonite - Jurassic, Upper Lias - Ravenscar, North Yorkshire, England 3. Metacoceras sp. nautilitoid cephalopod - Late Pennsylvanian, Kasimovian, Conemaugh Group, Glenshaw Fm - Armstrong County, Pennsylvania 4. Eromangateuthis soniae (previously referred to Boreopeltis) giant squid - Early Cretaceous, Toolebuc Fm - NW Queensland , Australia 5. Eurypteris remipes eurypterid - Upper Silurian, Fiddler's Green Formation, Phelps Waterlime - Lang's Quarry, Ilion, New York 6. Helicaulax pyrenaicus gastropod - Cretaceous, Upper Santonian - Southwest France 7. Cryptolithus tessellatus trilobites and unknown starfish - Ordovician, Trenton Group - Central Pennsylvania 8. Euproops danae - Mid Pennsylvanian, Francis Creek shale - Grundy Cty, Illinois, Mazon Creek 9. Neithea regularis bivalve - Cretaceous (Maastrichtian), Laumont Horizon, Nekum Chalk - Province de Liège, Belgium 10. Mecochirus magna lobster - Cretaceous (Aptian), bed 17 Atherfield Formation - Atherfield Point, Isle of Wight, UK 11. Paleocrinus planobasilis crinoid calyx - Ordovician, Benbolt Frm - Scott County, Virginia 12. Asterophyllites sp. horsetail ally - Carboniferous - Vigo County, Indiana

2022 INVERTEBRATE/PLANT FOSSIL OF THE YEAR (IPFOTY) The winner of the 2022 IPFOTY goes to... Proscorpius osborni scorpion - Upper Silurian. Bertie Group, Fiddlers Green Formation, Phelps Member - Lang's quarry, Herkimer, New York Congratulations to @Dean Ruocco !!!

Here we are with our 2022 IPFOTY contest entries. These are all 12 of our IPFOTM winners from 2022, listed in the order of the month they won. Carefully review these entries and vote for the one you think deserves the title of 2022 Invertebrate / Plant Fossil Of The Year! Poll closes on the 25th of January just before midnight. You can also vote for the 2022 Vertebrate Fossil Of The Year contest HERE. 1. Echinolampas hemisphaerica echinoid - Miocene, Serravallian - Aquitaine, France 2. Architarbus rotundatus spider - Pennsylvanian, Francis Creek Shale - Mazon Creek, Grundy County, Illinois 3. Murex spinicosta & Bolinus brandaris gastropods - Pliocene - Southwest France 4. Androgynoceras maculatum ammonite - Lower Jurassic (Lower Lias) - Holderness Coast, Mappleton, West Yorkshire, UK 5. Unidentified cidarid echinoid - Santonian age of the late Cretaceous, Dessau Formation - Central Texas 6. Larval Olenellus sp. trilobite - Cambrian, Kinzers Formation - Lancaster, Pennsylvania 7. Ekwanoscutellum ekwanensis trilobite - Silurian, Thornloe Fm - Temiskaming, Ontario, Canada 8. Proscorpius osborni scorpion - Upper Silurian. Bertie Group, Fiddlers Green Formation, Phelps Member - Lang's quarry, Herkimer, New York 9. Diaphorodendron rimosom bark w/ Spirorbis sp. polychaete worms - Pennsylvanian, Francis Creek Shale - Grundy County, Illinois 10. Spider (similar to Aphantomartis) - Carboniferous, Francis Creek Shale (307 Ma) - Pit 3, Braidwood, Illinois 11. Discoscaphites iris ammonite - Late Cretaceous Period (Late Maastrichtian), Owl Creek Formation - Mississippi 12. Feldmannia wintoni crab carapace - Cretaceous, Upper Albian, Pawpaw Fm - Tarrant County, Texas

2021 INVERTEBRATE/PLANT FOSSIL OF THE YEAR (IPFOTY) The winner of the 2021 IPFOTY goes to... Urasterella montana starfish - Upper Carboniferous (Pennsylvanian) Kasimovian stage Kreviakian substage - Kasimov town, Ryazan region, Russia Congratulations to @Kanopus !!!

Here we are with our 2021 IPFOTY contest entries. These are all 12 of our IPFOTM winners from 2021, listed in the order of the month they won. Carefully review these entries and vote for the one you think deserves the title of 2021 Invertebrate / Plant Fossil Of The Year! Poll closes on the 27th of January just before midnight. You can also vote for the 2021 Vertebrate Fossil Of The Year contest HERE. 1. Acanthotelson stimpsoni shrimp - 307 million years old, Pennsylvanian, Francis Creek Shale Layer (307 Ma) - Mazon Creek, Grundy County, Illinois 2. Anataphrus vigilans trilobite - Elgin Member, Maquoketa Formation (Late Ordovician) - NE Iowa 3. Romaniceras mexicanum ammonite - Upper Cretaceous (Turonian) - Blue Hill Member, Carlile Shale - Sandoval Co., New Mexico 4. Cricket (Superfamily Grylloidea) & Damselfly (Suborder Zygoptera) - Eocene, Green River Formation - Colorado 5. Tumidocarcinus giganteus crab - mid-Miocene - Canterbury, New Zealand 6. Craspedites mosquensis ammonite - Jurassic, Volgian (Tithonian), Craspedites nodiger ammonite zone - Samara Oblast, Kashpir, Russia 7. Architarbus rotundatus spider - Pennsylvanian, Francis Creek Shale - Mazon Creek, Morris, Illinois 8. Annularia radiata leaf whorls - Francis Creek Shale (Pennsylvanian) - Grundy Co., Illinois 9. Carneyella pilea edrioasteroid - Late Ordovician, Bellevue Formation (452.0 - 449.5 Ma) - Mason County, Kentucky 10. Spider, indet. Chelicerate - Miocene, Messinian Stage - near Murat, Cantal Dept., France 11. Urasterella montana starfish - Upper Carboniferous (Pennsylvanian) Kasimovian stage Kreviakian substage - Kasimov town, Ryazan region, Russia 12. Dipleura dekayi trilobite - Devonian, Moscow Fm - New York

2020 INVERTEBRATE/PLANT FOSSIL OF THE YEAR (IPFOTY) The winner of the 2020 IPFOTY goes to... Belotelson magister shrimp - Francis Shale, Middle Pennsylvanian (~307 Ma) - Mazonia South (Pit 11), Illinois Congratulations to @stats!!!

Here we are with our 2020 IPFOTY contest entries. These are all 12 of our IPFOTM winners from 2020, listed in the order of the month they won. Carefully review these entries and vote for the one you think deserves the title of 2020 Invertebrate / Plant Fossil Of The Year! Poll closes on the 24th of January just before midnight. You can also vote for the 2020 Vertebrate Fossil Of The Year contest HERE. 1. Belotelson magister shrimp - Francis Shale, Middle Pennsylvanian (~307 Ma) - Mazonia South (Pit 11), Illinois 2. Metopaster sp. sea star - Lower Thanetian, Paleocene - Southwest France 3. Scolecodonts (maxilla/jaws) of polychaetes (Protarabellites or Oenonites & Ramphoprion)- Georgian Bay Fm, Upper Ordovician - Mimico Creek, Toronto, Ontario 4. Arbacia improcera echinoid - Pliocene, Yorktown Formation Zone - Craven County, North Carolina 5. Sinosura kelheimense brittlestars - Upper Jurassic - Hienheim Quarry, Germany 6. Macroporaster matutinus sea star - Late Ordovician, Salona Formation - Pennsylvania 7. Thaleops ovata tilobite - Platteville Formation, Ordovician - Grant County, Wisconsin 8. Thresherodiscus ramosus edrioasteroid - Ordovician, Bobcaygeon Formation - Goat Island, Ontario 9. Triarthrus eatoni trilobites - Late Ordovician, Lorraine Group, Frankfort Shale - Oneida county, New York 10. Craspedites subditus ammonite - Jurassic, Upper Tithonian (Volgian) - Undory, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Russia 11. Heterosalenia sp. nov. echinoid (new species currently being described) - Lower Glen Rose Formation, Lower Cretaceous (Albian) - Comal County, Texas 12. Diplocalamites sp. horsetail - Middle Pennsylvanian - New Mexico

2019 INVERTEBRATE/PLANT FOSSIL OF THE YEAR (IPFOTY) Unidentified (trigonotarbid?) arachnid - Late Carboniferous (Westphalian D), Osnabrück Fm. - Piesberg quarry near Osnabrück, Germany Congratulations to @paleoflor!!!

Here we are with our 2019 IPFOTY contest entries. These are all 12 of our IPFOTM winners from 2019, listed in the order of the month they won. Carefully review these entries and vote for the one you think deserves the title of 2019 Invertebrate / Plant Fossil Of The Year! Poll closes on the 25th of January just before midnight. You can also vote for the 2019 Vertebrate Fossil Of The Year contest HERE. 1. Manticoceras sp. goniatite - Frasnian Matagne Formation, Late Devonian (382-372 Ma) - Chimay area, Belgium 2. Lepidostrobus sp. lepidodendron cone (strobile) - Westphalien B, Upper Carboniferous - near Lens, Northern France 3. Calamites sp. horsetail tree trunk segment - Pennsylvanian - Southeast Oklahoma 4. Nahecaris frankei (phyllocarid) - Emsian (Early Devonian) - Burg-Reuland, Belgium 5. Triarthrus eatoni trilobite (ventral view with eggs) - Ordovician - Beecher's Beds, Walcott Quarry, near Rome, New York 6. Eurypterus remipes eurypterid - Late Silurian, Phelps Member, Bertie Group - Herkimer County, New York 7. Unidentified (trigonotarbid?) arachnid - Late Carboniferous (Westphalian D), Osnabrück Fm. - Piesberg quarry near Osnabrück, Germany 8. Asteroceras and Promicroceras ammonites - Jurassic - Lyme Regis, Dorset, England 9. Glyptoxoceras subcompressum(?) heteromorph ammonite - Santonian, Haslam - Mt. Tzuhalem, Vancouver Island, Canada 10. Litoricola macrodactylus crab - Lower Thanetian, Paleocene - Southwest France 11. Devonoblastus whiteavesi blastoid - Widder Fm, Hungry Hollow Member (Middle Devonian) - Arkona, Ontario 12. Amoeboceras alternoides ammonite and Dicroloma cochleata gastropod - Jurassic, Upper Oxfordian - Bronnitsy, Moscow Oblast, Russia

2018 INVERTEBRATE/PLANT FOSSIL OF THE YEAR (IPFOTY) Eurypterus remipes eurypterid - Fiddlers Green Formation, Phelps Member, Upper Silurian (~410 mya) - Ilion (Herkimer County), NY. Congrats to @Al Tahan!

Here we are with our 2018 IPFOTY contest entries. These are all 12 of our IPFOTM winners from 2018, listed in the order of the month they won. Carefully review these entries and vote for the one you think deserves the title of 2018 Invertebrate / Plant Fossil Of The Year! Poll closes on the 25th of January just before midnight. You can also vote for the 2018 Vertebrate Fossil Of The Year contest HERE. 1. Flexicalymene cf. F. senaria trilobite - Ordovician Galena Formation, Prosser Member - Fillmore Co., Minnesota, USA 2. Isotelus sp. trilobite - Middle Ordovician Carters Limestone/Lower Hermitage Formation - Eastern Middle Tennessee, USA 3. Gennaeocrinus crinoid with Platyceras gastropod - Middle Devonian, Moscow formation - Livingston County, New York, USA 4. Euproops xiphosuran - Asturian (Westphalian D), Late Carboniferous - Piesberg quarry, near Osnabrück, Germany 5. Isotelus iowensis trilobite - Ordovician - Fayette County, Iowa, USA 6. Pleurocystites cf. P. squamosus cystoid - Ordovician - Minnesota, USA 7. Fusimilis proxima gastropod shell - Late Cretaceous - Coon Creek Science Center, Adamsville, Tennessee, USA 8. Horn Coral growing in a colony of Syringopora sp. coral - Pennsylvanian Naco Limestone - NE Gila County, Arizona, USA 9. Favosites placenta (tabulate coral with epibionts) - Mid-Devonian, Hungry Hollow Formation - South Pit, Hungry Hollow, Arkona, Ontario, Canada 10. Eldredgeops rana multiple plate - Middle Devonian/Windom Shale, Hamilton Group - Penn-Dixie Fossil Park, Blasdell, New York, USA 11. Harpoceras serpentinum ammonite plate - Lower Jurassic (Lias/Toarcian) - Postbauer-Heng (near Altdorf), Germany 12. Eurypterus remipes eurypterid - Fiddlers Green Formation, Phelps Member, Upper Silurian (~410 mya) - Ilion (Herkimer County), New York, USA

The Winner of the 2016 Invertebrate / Plant Find Of The Year is the Megokkos sp. crab with epibionts from the Late Eocene/Early Oligocene of Oregon, USA!!! Congratulations to bruce on his 2nd FOTY win!!! Finding and prepping your own fossils is its own reward; but this one is truly special. Thanks to @bruce for sharing it with us! I would also like to congratulate, again, the other eleven winners in 2016!

It is that time, again...time to look back at the monthly winners in our 2016 contests! You can exhaust the descriptive terms needed to elaborate on these finds, but we still need to pick a winner. Opinions are welcome. (disclaimer: The Fossil Forum is not responsible for physical or mental maladies that occur while making your decision. Please consult your own mind, family, friends and strangers if you need assistance making your choice. ) Review these winners and cast your vote for the 2016 Invertebrate / Plant Find Of The Year! You can vote in the other contest HERE. The Polls will end on January 14th. 1. January 2016 IPFOTM - Unknown sea urchin from the Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) Lower Himenoura formation of Kagoshima, Amakusa Japan 2. February 2016 IPFOTM - Apoderoceras sp. ammonite from the Lower Pliensbachian (Lower Jurassic) of Dorset, UK 3. March 2016 IPFOTM - Ogygiocarella debuchi trilobite from the Ordovician Llanvirn series of West Shropshire, England 4. April 2016 IPFOTM - Torynomma quadrata crab from the Lower Cretaceous of Queensland, Australia 5. May 2016 IPFOTM - Aturia alabamensis nautiloid from the Eocene Castle Hayne Formation of North Carolina, USA 6. June 2016 IPFOTM - Didontogaster cordylina polychaete worm from the Late Carboniferous Francis creek shale of Illinois, USA 7. July 2016 IPFOTM - Lacoea cone from the Pennsylvanian subperiod of Ohio, USA 8. August 2016 IPFOTM - Megokkos sp. crab with epibionts from the Late Eocene/Early Oligocene of Oregon, USA 9. September 2016 IPFOTM - Crinoid with stem, calyx, and arms from the Ordovician Lexington Limestone (Devils Hollow Member) of Kentucky, USA 10. October 2016 IPFOTM - Lepidodendron obovatum scale tree fossil from the Westphalian (Carboniferous) of Bruay en Artois, Northern France 11. November 2016 IPFOTM - Lingula squamiformis inarticulate brachiopod from the Brigantian stage (Mississippian) of County Durham, UK 12. December 2016 IPFOTM - Loriolia rosana echinoid block from the Lower Cretaceous Upper Glen Rose Formation of Texas, USA Congratulations to all these winners! @David in Japan @Koss1959 @TNGray @Jesuslover340 @sixgill pete @fossilized6s @saysac @bruce @MikeD @nala @TqB @-AnThOnY-