Misplaced Pages

Pseudorthocerataceae is an extinct superfamily of actively mobile carnivorous cephalopod, essentially a Nautiloid, that lived in what would be North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia during the Ordovician from 490—445.6 mya, existing for approximately 44.4 million years.

Taxonomy

Pseudorthocerataceae was named by Sweet (1964). It was assigned to Pseudorthocerida by Barskov (1968); and to Orthocerida by Sweet (1964), Evans (1994) and Evans (1994).

Morphology

The shell is usually long, and may be straight ("orthoconic") or gently curved. In life, these animals may have been similar to the modern squid, except for the long shell.

Fossil distribution

Fossil distribution is exclusive to Sardinia, Wisconsin USA, and northern Ontario, Canada.

References

1. PaleoBiology Database: Pseudorthocerataceae, basic info
2. W. C. Sweet. 1964. Nautiloidea–Orthocerida. In C. Teichert et al. (ed.), Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology (K) Mollusca 3 216-261
3. D. H. Evans. 1994. The Cephalopod Fauna of the Bardahessaigh Formation (Caradoc Series) of Pomeroy, County Tyrone. Irish Journal of Earth Sciences 13:11-29

• Prehistoric nautiloids
• Ordovician cephalopods
• Late Ordovician extinctions
• Paleozoic cephalopods of Asia
• Paleozoic cephalopods of Europe
• Paleozoic cephalopods of North America
• Paleozoic animals of Oceania