336 TEXTBOOK OF GEOLOGY 7 of a blade and this is known as the pre octopuses of the present day belong to the Geclogical history Ht has been stated earlier that the cephalopox . AS are exch marine animals. They are, however, more thickly popul i . ve i : PUlaied ji, 4 comperatively warmer seus. Some of them live on the sex ms of the while there are others which swim in the shallower pi sea, Amongst the cephalopods, the nautiloids ate said to be ig most ancient forms. The genus Volbonhella, belonging w the sub-class Nautiloidea, has been found to occur as fossil withis the rocks of Lower-Cambrian age. Towards the close of the Camb a few more genera like Orthoceras, Cyrtoceras, ete., appeared. 7] nautiloids ef Cambrian age were of rather primi the Ordovician, the nautiloids became more important and ni forms like Plioceras, Endoceras, etc., appeared. The nautiloids atta their culmination during the Silurian and developed twentyfour distinct families. Gomphoceras, Phragmoceras, Actinoceras, ¢! some of the well-known forms which appeared during the Siluva:. period. During the Devonian and Carboniferous periods, the n gradually lost their importance and, towards the end of the Palacozoi era. they were represented by only five families. The begin the Mesozoic was marked by the appearance of the new genus, Nautilus, which exists up to the present day. During the whole of the Mesozoic, the nautiloids were of little importance and only tao of the families could continue up to the Tertiary era. The genus Nautilus, however, attained worldwide distribution during the Cretaceous age and is found to occur in the moder seas as wel! The most ancient remains of the sub-class Ammonoidea ha’ studied from the rocks of Upper-Silurian age. The ancient known as Agoniatites, had goniatite suture. During the Devonis® a number of new forms developed, of which mention may be mace of Tomoceras, Anarcestes, Bactrites, Clymenia, etc. Ammonoi’ loids with goniatite suture continued to dominate during the Deven! and Carboniferous periods. Towards the end of the Carbonifer period, ammonoids with ceratite suture appeared and they poe common in the Permian. Throughout the upper part of the Palaco? Scanned with CamScanner cant a atPALAEONTOLOG) monoid became nic re and More amie said w have existed uri jarle® era, However, Witnessed the cy), ween of the Ammonoidea. The 271mo0 at exhibit complex suture-lines and yy, ove of Palacozoic a During the Trias) coe of ammonoids existed, of which jaynilie® a ¢ ing the Jurassic. In all however, nnd were gradually developed during 4. unerous groups of ammonoids Were in existence doy and © cous periods. Amménoids with ammonite a Ie toward the close of the Permian or the beginning of the : fiod. The’ characteristic forms of Jurassic aye a snore ae less flattened shells and the ammonoids of the Jurassic and ¢ n riods generally have highly ormamented shells, Ty - of the Mesozoic, some forms exhibited uncoiling of the shell “i many others were characterised by the simplification of swure-lines, some of the Cretaceous ammonoids were of extremely larg id of the ¢ getiod and do not occur as fossils within the rocks of t and Quaternary eras. Meekoceras, Otoceras, Cersiites, Piyehites, Tropites, Arcestes, Joannites, etc., are some of the ammonoids on Triassic age. Amaltheus, Harpoceras, Hiiduceras, Stephanoceras; Mac- tocephalites, Reineckeia, Perisphinc some of the common forms of Jurassic a: Schloenbachia, Acanthoceras, Turril? leeras, etc., are some of the charact The members of the sub-class C ‘inning of the Mesozoic era. Belerimites and allied van SPonant and abundant during the Jurassic and Cret« ecrnis became much less importent during th. Present represented by the squids. Cutth > Whi In so rds ure very U cera exbivit well] Jy as umportant 40" ihe # i Period, eleceans The ammonoids were totally extinct at the Peltoceras. Douvilleiccias, Hamites, Scaphites, Baculites, Placen- Cretan cous pidea ure known since the we Tertiary and 8 Occur mm the mover served ; ved, the cephule fggj¢ TM AMMonvids of the Messz for i feet 2 OMS and are uiilised conve we. Scanned with CamScanner