Description
Ammonite Macrocephallites 12cm wide
This Ammonite Macrocephallites measures 12cm across and is a superb specimen. This ammonite has been highly polished, displaying the intricate suture patterns. This fossil comes from Tulear in Southern Madagascar, a country with a wealth of superb fossils and crystals. This particular specimen is in the region of 160 million years old, and dates from the Jurassic period.
Ammonites have been extinct for 65 million years and are a form of Cephalopod, a group of marine molluscs. These first appeared in the Devonian Period, over 4oo million years ago. Generally only the outer shells of these creatures fossilise, the soft interior body tissues of the ammonites being too delicate. As the ammonite grew larger it added new chambers, with the creature itself only living in the largest, newest chamber. The actual name Ammonite, derives from from ‘Ammon’ the Greek God. Ammonites were plankton feeders, they had long tentacles, and they also swam upright. Altogether, there were in the region of ten thousand different species. The largest species were up to a metre across, whereas the smallest were only a millimetre. Ammonites became extinct 65 million years ago. The coleoids, squid, cuttlefish and also the octopus that swim in our seas now however, are closely related.
