Fossils (Inventory)/Cephalopod

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Cephalopod fossil

The cephalopod inventory field should be used to list stations which exhibit cephalopod fossils. Cephalopod fossils are characterized by a chambered shell. They are commonly referred to as a chambered nautilus or chambered nautiloid. The shell could be spiraled or straight. They are usually found in exposed bedrock or breakdown and may be obscured in various ways. They could be covered partially or completely by secondary formations and they could be exposed in any direction or in any cross section.

If a shell impression is found (not a clam or brachiopod) with internal chambers, it is probably a cephalopod. If there are no internal chambers, it is probably a gastropod. Likewise, if the interior of the shell cannot be seen, a shell with logorithmically spaced indications of internal chambers is probably a cephalopod. A shell with a smooth exterior or fine, more evenly spaced growth rings is probably a gastropod.

The size of cephalopod fossil impressions can vary greatly.

Cephalopods can leave fossil impressions with no shell. Tentacles like a squid or octopus are the clue to look for. These shell-less impressions are usually hard to recognize and identify, especially in bedrock exposed by dissolution or erosion.

See also


Fossils (Inventory)/Cephalopod is a part of the cave inventory project.
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