Parapuzosia seppenradensis
Extinct species of ammonite
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Parapuzosia seppenradensis is the largest known species of ammonite.[1] It lived during the Lower Campanian Epoch of the Late Cretaceous period, in marine environments in what is now Westphalia, Germany. A specimen, found in Seppenrade near Lüdinghausen, Germany in 1895 measures 1.8 m (5.9 ft) in diameter, although the living chamber is incomplete.
| Parapuzosia seppenradensis Temporal range: Lower Campanian | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Cephalopoda |
| Subclass: | †Ammonoidea |
| Order: | †Ammonitida |
| Family: | †Desmoceratidae |
| Genus: | †Parapuzosia |
| Species: | †P. seppenradensis |
| Binomial name | |
| †Parapuzosia seppenradensis (Landois, 1895) | |
| Synonyms | |
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The original fossil is shown in the foyer of the Westphalian Museum of Natural History, Münster, Germany. It was once estimated that, if complete, this specimen would have had a diameter of approximately 2.55 m (8.4 ft)[2] or even 3.5 m (11 ft).[3] However, a study in 2021 estimated the diameter of the largest specimens to be around 2 m (6.6 ft).[4] An 1898 study estimated a total live mass around 1,455 kg (3,208 lb), of which the shell would constitute 705 kg (1,554 lb).[3] In contrast, a 2025 study estimated that the body weighed around 400 kg (880 lb) based on its shell volume, which would still place it among the heaviest cephalopods.[5]
See also
