Acanthoceras is an extinct cephalopod genus belonging to the subclass Ammonoidea and family Acanthoceratidae that lived from the Albian to early Coniacian stages of the Cretaceous.Acanthoceras at Fossilworks.org
Description Their shells had ornate ribs whose function is unknown, although some scientists have speculated that these ribs helped strengthen the animals' shells to allow them to live at greater depths where the water pressure is higher. An adult had a shell diameter of approximately .
Species A. athabascense Warren and Stelck, 1955 A. chasca Benavides-Caceres, 1956 A. compitalis Stoyanow, 1949 A. folleatum White, 1887 A. joserita Stoyanow, 1949 A. jukesbrownei Spath, 1926 A. offarcinatum White, 1887 A. pollocense Benavides-Caceres, 1956 A. rhotomagensis (Brongniart, 1822) A. sangalense Benavides-Caceres, 1956 A. seitzi Riedel, 1932 A. wintoni Adkins, 1928
Distribution Acanthoceras fossils have been found in Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Colombia (Hondita Formation, Prado, Tolima),Patarroyo, 2011 Denmark, Egypt, Morocco, France, Germany, India (Gujarat) , Iran, Madagascar, Mexico, Mozambique, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the United Kingdom, United States (California, Minnesota, New Mexico, Texas), and Venezuela.
References
Bibliography
Further reading W.J. Arkell et al., 1957 Mesozoic Ammonoidea, Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology Part L. Geological Society of America, University of Kansas Press
External links Acanthoceras in the Paleobiology Database