Anyone got $425 to spare?

[Phil]

Unfortunately I do not. However, if I did then I may find myself bidding for this beautiful fossil:

Trachyteuthis on e-bay.

Lovely.

 

[tonmo]

Nice one! Now I know what to ask for for Father's Day.

 

[Jean]

gorgeous

I'd love it but I have to live in a mundane world where repairs on my elderly car have the priority

J

 

[Clem]

Phil,

I noticed that the owner of the fossil lives on Cape Cod.

Well, wouldn't you know it? Come next week, I'll be on the Cape, too. Small world.

Small, small world.

Small, small world with ineffective security systems and slow response times from the local authori-

Yes. Yes, I'm sorry. I'm extremely sorry, Mr. Ashcroft. You're right. No, a morning prayer meeting probably wouldn't hurt. I'll see you then. Yes, Sir.



Clem

 

[Phil]

Fossil squid do sometimes come up for sale like this; one major source seems to be Jurassic Solhofen deposits from Germany. This is a site of excveptional preservation and the source for the seven verified fossils of Archaeopterix, the infamous dino-bird. Some European fossil shops occasionally stock these squid but prices are usually at least $500 or more depending on the state of preservation, rather too expensive for me!

It's worth keeping an eye on e-bay as this was certainly not the first specimen of Trachyteuthis to be advertised here. Perhaps a cheaper one will sneak through one day!

Clem, what on earth is your new avatar? I can't make head or tail of it?

 

[Phil]

Oh silly me, it's that bear going sub-spotting. Goodness, I'm quick on the uptake.....not!

 

[Phil]

If anyone is feeling rich this month here is another beautiful example of Trachyteuthis libanotica for sale. This Cretaceous squid was probably a vampyromorph. The soft-bodied preservation on this example is fantastic.

Trachyteuthis

 

[Phil]

This Cretaceous squid was probably a vampyromorph.

Oops! My mistake.

For the record, I've just found out that Trachyteuthis is not believed to be a vampyromorph but belonging to the mesoteuthids, a group that split from the vampyromorphs in the mid-
Jurassic and is now believed to be totally extinct. They were not the direct ancestors of modern squid at all.

You learn something every day......

 

[Steve O'Shea]

... if only I hadn't hammered the credit cards

Actually, just sold the house; could spend up large on stunning pieces like this and live in a tent.

There have been a few of these trickling online of late haven't there Phil? You suppose someone is sitting on a mass of them? Maybe I'll try for an exchange.
Cheers
O

 

[Sedusa]

I see these fossils from lebanon from time to time on ebay as well... Curious, I did a web search and the only non-auction fossils of squid I was able to find (all from lebanon) were at least $1,600!!

 

[Phil]

Yes Sedusa, these fossils really do reach high prices, and doubtless will continue to do so as long as someone is willing to pay.

Have you seen this one for sale? The preservation is unbelievable, you can see the beak, and (is that a) siphon. Interesting that the mesoteuthids appear to have had eight arms of equal length and no tentacles.

http://www.paleosearch.com/3057.asp

 

[Steve O'Shea]

OMG

 

[Tintenfisch]

[gets out mop to clean soggy carpet under Steve-O's desk]

 

[Steve O'Shea]

.... dripping wet feet.

OK, slightly composed. Phil, where are the fins?? Have any of these fossils had fins/fin imprints positioned anywhere? Truly sensational preservation.

 

[Phil]

OK, slightly composed. Phil, where are the fins?? Have any of these fossils had fins/fin imprints positioned anywhere?

Well, I have not seen any examples of Trachyteuthis with fins, but then again I have only seen a couple of photos of this animal. Images are not easy to find.

I am sure fins must be present. Hopefully having finally sorted out this creatures' systematics, it transpires that the Upper Jurassic Trachyteuthis is a member of the family Trachyteuthididae, which along with the Palaeololiginidae, make up the Mesoteuthina, a sub-order of the Vampyromorpha. These Mesoteuthids had some form of distinct gladius, though exactly how this differed from the Vampyromorphs I have yet to discover. (It may have been shovel-shaped).

They had eight arms of roughly equal lengths, and were a split from the Vampyromorphs sometime in the early Jurassic. They left no descendants and became an extinct family in the Cretaceous. Certainly the closely related Palaeololiginidae had fins, and example of which can be seen here as did the Vampyromorphs, the stem group from which the Trachyteuthididae were derived in the early Jurassic.

Practically every source of information on these ancient 'squid' seems contradictory. It's giving me quite a headache.