| Essexella | |
|---|---|
| |
| An artist's illustration of Essexella asherae, via Vidimus78 on DeviantArt | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Cnidaria |
| Class: | Scyphozoa |
| Order: | Rhizostomatida |
| Genus: | †Essexella |
| Species: | †E. asherae |
Essexella is a genus of scyphozoan jellyfish known from Late Carboniferous fossils containing the type and only species E. asherae. It is one of the most recurrent organisms in the Mazon Creek fossil beds of Illinois, United States of America. In the Essex biota of Mazon Creek, it consists of 42% of all fossil finds. Its behavior is speculated to be similar to that of modern-day jellyfish.
E. asherae fossil on display at the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano