In the series from the Urweltmuseum Hauff in Holzmaden (link list to previous instalments here) we’ve had the belemnites, now it is squids.
Phragmotheutis conocauda, with a small fish in between the hooked tentacles. You can nicely see the cuttlebone, the internal shell that is the counterpart to the belemneite’s rostrum. Here’s a much bigger one, from Teudopsis subcostata:
Overall, this cuttlebone is very similar to the extant Sepia! That’s why there are no models in the Urweltmuseum of them, as they’d looks so unremarkable, too. There are models of belemnites, and I just noticed that I forgot to post them last time, so I will put them in an extra post tonight.
On with another, even better preserved Phragmotheutis conocauda: count the tentacles! All ten are there – or rather, the paired hooks on each are preserved in situ.
See the ink? Cool, hu?
Phragmotheutis is the most common cuttlefish, and then there is another species called Belemnotheutis zellensis.
the main differences are in the proportions of the cuttlebone and the tentacles – look how slender they are in B. compared to P. Then, there is Loligosepia aalensis, of which a very nice specimen with two individuals next to each other is shown. No tentacles visible (maybe they had suckers, not hooks?), but you can see nicely how in one the ink bag broke and the ink spilled out.
Nice, fat cuttlebones, whereas Chitinobelus acifer has a calcitic primary rostrum, but nothing else of the cuttlebone is calcified.
and to round off this post I have another Loligosepia for you, the largest one ever found. At a length of 63 cm it is quite a whopper, and the tentacles have been preserved!
That’s it with regards to squids, but I have some more tentacles in store. Plenty of ammonites to come, as well as the life models of the belemnites.
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