A behind-the-scenes look at our Roe Calcarenite fossil collection

Photo Galleries | Updated 8 years ago

A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Two halfs of a fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Fossil bivalves in their storage boxFossil shells which belong to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Spondylus spondyloides
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the species Chlamys asperrimus
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the species Chlamys asperrimus
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Spondylus spondyloides
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Two halfs of a fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the species Chlamys asperrimus
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Four fossil gastropod shellsFossil shells which belong to the species Liratomina adelaidensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Spondylus spondyloides
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Seven fossil gastropod shellsFossil shells which belong to the species Sigaretatrema albosutura
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Three fossil gastropod shellsFossil shells which belong to the living species Diastoma melanioides
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Three fossil gastropod shellsFossil shells which belong to the living species Diastoma melanioides
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Two fossil gastropod shellsFossil shells which belong to the living species Campanile symbolicum
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil gastropod shellFossil shell which belongs to the living species Cassis fimbriata
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil gastropod shellFossil shell which belongs to the living species Cassis fimbriata
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil gastropod shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Chicoreus lundeliusae
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil gastropod shellFossil shell which belongs to the living species Lyria mitraeformis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Seventeen fossil gastropod shellsFossils shells from the Roe Plains
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Three fossil gastropod shellsFossil shells which belong to the living species Cassis fimbriata
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil gastropod shellFossil shell which belongs to the living species Cassis fimbriata
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil gastropod shellFossil shell which belongs to the genus Fusinus; family Fasciolariidae, sometimes called tulip shells
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil gastropod shellFossil shell which belongs to the genus Fusinus; family Fasciolariidae, sometimes called tulip shells
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Six fossil gastropod shellsFossil shells which belong to the living species Conus anemone
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Five fossil gastropod shellsFossil shells which belong to the living species Lyria mitraeformis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil gastropod shellFossil shell which belongs to the living species Campanile symbolicum
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Several fossil bivalve shells bonded togetherThe fossiliferous Roe Calcarenite
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Several fossil bivalve shells bonded togetherThe fossiliferous Roe Calcarenite
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the species Chlamys asperrimus
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Spondylus spondlyloides
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the species Equichlamys bifrons
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
A fossil bivalve shellFossil shell which belongs to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum
Two fossil bivalve shells with storage labelFossil shells which belong to the extinct species Miltha hamptonensis
Photo by Jessica Scholle, image copyright WA Museum

About 3 million years ago the Leeuwin Current flowed strongly, warming the waters along the south-west Australian coast to such an extent that mangroves flourished and corals grew. This warm sea also supported rich molluscan faunas. Nearly 600 species are known from a thin limestone called the Roe Calcarenite which outcrops on the Roe Plains. Because of their recent age about two-thirds of the species are still living today, although some are now found in warmer waters to the north. Through this photo-gallery we invite you to discover fossilised bivalves and gastropods from the Roe Plains that are conserved in our collections.

For further information

Discover two new gastropod species discovered the last decade in the Roe Plains: a new species of Bothriembryon (described in 2005) and a new species Notocypraea (described in 2011).