Belosaepia
Appearance
Belosaepia Temporal range:
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Belosepia sepioidea | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Mollusca |
Class: | Cephalopoda |
Order: | Sepiida |
Family: | †Belosaepiidae |
Genus: | †Belosaepia |
Species | |
Belosaepia, occasionally incorrectly Belosepia,[2] is an extinct genus of cuttlefish-like cephalopod known from the Eocene.[1]
Morphology
[edit]Species of the genus Belosaepia reached 18 centimetres (7.1 in) in length and 5 centimetres (2.0 in) across and had a large siphuncle that penetrated its oblique septa.[1] The shell was endogastrically coiled.[1] It had a small belemnite-like guard, which took the form of a short horn at the posterior end of the shell;[1] usually, only a small portion of the shell closest to the guard is preserved. The chambers in the shell closely resemble those present in the cuttlebone of modern cuttlefish.[1]
Ecology
[edit]Belosaepia lived close to the sea floor.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h Yancey, T. E.; Garvie, C. L.; Wicksten, M. (2010). "The Middle Eocene Belosaepia ungula (Cephalopoda: Coleoida) from Texas: Structure, Ontogeny and Function" (PDF). Journal of Paleontology. 84 (2): 267–287. doi:10.1666/09-018R.1.
- ^ e.g. "Functional Morphology of the Eocene Coleoid Belosepia".