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[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"40338","attributes":{"class":"media-image","typeof":"foaf:Image","style":"","alt":"Ammonite"}}]]Did you guess today's Funky Find? Here's the story behind the ammonite, as told by our Archivist and Registrar, Jennifer Noffze, who is always on the hunt for funky finds in the Children's Museum collection!
Although they do not exist today, ammonites are important to paleontologists because they are excellent index fossils, which are fossils that are used to define and identify geologic periods. Each species of ammonite lived for a short time, but they had such a broad geographical distribution that they can be found in stratigraphic rock layers often separated by great distances. These animals were predominate in the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods and they became extinct at the end of the Mesozoic Period.
Ammonites are part of the mollusk Cephalopod class and are related to modern day octopus, squid and cuttlefish. These animals had a coiled shell and very complex suture patterns. Ammonites had tentacles and a beak like squid. Similar to the chambered nautilus, the shell was divided into chambers connected by a siphon tube. This mechanism allowed the animal to control its buoyancy in its water environment. This specimen was acquired in 2000 and it was found in Rosebud County, Montana. It has been polished with very apparent sutures.
Looking for more? Go behind the scenes in The Children's Museum's collection when you check out the full blog category.
