Ammonites were shelled cephalopods that died out about 66 million years ago. Fossilization occurred when shells were buried in marine sediments and the original aragonite was replaced by other. Fossils of them are found all around the world, sometimes in very large concentrations.
Obituary Harvel Huston Escue of Leitchfield, Kentucky Dermitt
Ammonites are an extinct group of marine mollusks that thrived in earth’s oceans for millions of years. They had a coiled external shell similar to that of the modern nautilus. Discover the fascinating world of ammonites — extinct marine cephalopods.
The name ammonite, from which the scientific term is derived, was inspired by the spiral shape of their fossilized shells, which somewhat resemble tightly coiled rams ' horns.
Ammonoid, any of a group of extinct cephalopods (of the phylum mollusca), forms related to the modern pearly nautilus (nautilus), that are frequently found as fossils in marine rocks dating. Due to their durable aragonite shells, ammonites fossilized prolifically. Ammonites first appearing in the fossil record 240 million years ago, descending from straight shelled cephalopods. Ammonites were marine animals belonging to the phylum mollusca and the class cephalopoda.
Ammonite shells are used today as index fossils, meaning they can help date other fossils that are found in the same layer of marine rock. These fascinating creatures left behind an extensive fossil record that. Learn about their evolution, shell structure, fossilization, and role as key index fossils in geology. In the new ammonite specimen, round structures interpreted as fossil remains of ovaries are well visible.
