A whorl is a single, complete 360° revolution or turn in the spiral growth of a mollusc shell. A spiral configuration of the shell is found in of numerous gastropods, but it is also found in shelled cephalopods including Nautilus, Spirula and the large extinct subclass of cephalopods known as the ammonites.
A varix is an anatomical feature of the shell of certain sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs. Gastropods whose shells have varices are primarily families and species within the taxonomic groups Littorinimorpha and Neogastropoda.
A protoconch is an embryonic or larval shell which occurs in some classes of molluscs, e.g., the initial chamber of an ammonite or the larval shell of a gastropod. In older texts it is also called "nucleus". The protoconch may sometimes consist of several whorls, but when this is the case, the whorls show no growth lines.
Stephanoceras is an extinct genus of Stephanoceratoid ammonite which lived during the Bajocian. It is the type genus of the family Stephanoceratidae.
Alocolytoceras is a lytoderatid ammonite with whorls that pass during growth from round to oval, rounded-quadrate, or compressed; with about 19 deep constrictions per whorl, with as many as 21 sharp ribs in between. The shell is evolute. All whorls are visible from either side.
Unipeltoceras is an extinct ammonite genus included in the perisphictacian family, Aspidoceratidae, and a member of the subfamily Peltoceratinae, that lived during the Callovian stage, late in the Middle Jurassic.
Lytoceratina is a suborder of Jurassic and Cretaceous ammonites that produced loosely coiled, evolute and gyroconic shells in which the sutural element are said to have complex moss-like endings.
Ammonitina comprises a diverse suborder of ammonite cephalopods that lived during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods of the Mesozoic Era. They are excellent index fossils, and it is often possible to link the rock layer in which they are found to specific geological time periods.
Parastrenoceras is an extinct genus from the ammonoid cephalopod order Ammonitida, included in the family Spiroceratidae that lived during the Bajocian stage of the Middle Jurassic.
Macrocephalites is a genus of the stephanoceratoid ammonite family Macrocephalitidae, diagnostic of the Callovian stage of the Middle Jurassic. Three subgenera, Dolikephalites, Kamptokephalites, and Pleurocephalite are recognized in addition to Macrocephalites itself, with Indocephalites tentatively included as the fourth.
Eoderoceratidae is the ancestral and most primitive family of the Eoderoceratoidea; lower Jurassic ammonite cephalopods, characterized by evolute, commonly serpenticonic, shells that had long body chambers and would have had no stable floating position; and thus resemble contemporary Psiloceratoidea. Spines, or tubercles, are typically found in two rows on the inner and outer parts of the whorl sides, joined by radial ribs. These are often more developed on the inner and middle whorls, becoming less so or absent on the outer. Sutures are highly complex.
Lytoceratidae is a taxonomic family of ammonoid cephalopods belonging to the suborder Lytoceratina, characterized by very evolute shells that generally enlarge rapidly, having whorls in contact but mostly overlapping very sightly, or not at all.
Lytoceratinae is a subfamily of ammonoid cephalopods that make up part of the family Lytoceratidae.
Schlotheimia is a genus of extinct cephalopods belonging to the subclass Ammonoidea that lived during the Hettangian stage at the beginning of the Early Jurassic.
Echioceratidae is an extinct family of ammonites that lived during Sinemurian stage of Early Jurassic.
Harpoceras is an extinct genus of cephalopod belonging to the family Hildoceratidae. These cephalopods existed in the Jurassic period, during Toarcian age from Falciferum zone to Commune subzone of Bifrons zone. They were fast-moving nektonic carnivores.
Hammatoceras is a genus of ammonites belonging to the family Hammatoceratidae which lived during the Late Toarcian stage of the Early/Lower Jurassic between about 184 and 175 million year ago.
Streptocyclammina is a genus of benthic forams with a flattened test from the Jurassic. The test usually starts off streptospiral hence the name, and becomes planispiral in the mature stage. Chambers are numerous per whorl, whorls become rapidly larger in peneropline fashion. Sutures between whorls are slightly indented, the periphery rounded. The wall is finely agglutinated, externally imperorate, internally with massive septa perforated by numerous apertures.
Peronoceras is genus of ammonite that lived during the middle Toarcian stage of early Jurassic. Members of this genus existed only in Fibulatum Subzone of Bifrons Zone. Their fossils were found in Europe, northern Africa, Asia, North America and South America.
Hildoceratinae is an extinct subfamily of cephalopods belonging to the family Hildoceratidae. Ammonites of this subfamily had shells with elliptical or quadrate whorl section with keel or tricarinate, bisulcate venter. Ribs were variable, from falcate to strongly angled and from fine to strong. They can be interrupted by spiral groove in midlateral part of the shell. While some species can be smooth, strongly ribbed ones can have tubercules. Microconchs have short lapplets that is in its shape similar to the shape of growth lines in spiral midlateral groove.
