AMMONITE

An exceptionally well preserved Ammonite, with excellent detail throughout the specimen, free of surrounding rock, 55 x45mm, Lyme Regis, United Kingdom, Jurassic (185 million years ago)

“With squidlike tentacles extending from their distinctive multichambered shells, the extinct marine predators known as ammonites were once among the most successful and diverse animals on Earth.

During their long history, ammonites survived three mass extinctions—most notably the Permian extinction, a global warming that was brought on by volcanic activity about 252 million years ago, and that killed 96 percent of the planet’s marine species. While many species of ammonites died out in that extinction event, scientists believe the survivors diversified explosively in the million years that followed. Ammonites hunted the planet’s seas until they were entirely wiped out by the same cataclysm that claimed the non-avian dinosaurs about 66 million years ago.” – National Geographic

Fossil