New Method Reveals More about the Life of Extinct, Ancient Marine Creatures

Scientists are learning a bit more about some ancient marine creatures. With state-of-the-art imaging techniques, they've received new evidence that ammonites were able to swim using their shell-very much like the nautilus.

Ammonites have a visceral mass that's usually protected by a helical shell with several chambers. One theory is that these animals lived at the bottom of the sea. Another theory claims that they were able to swim by using their shell with its gas-filled chambers to compensate for the weight of their shell and soft body.

In order to find out which was true, the scientists developed a reliable evaluation technique for CT scanning images, using nautilus shells as test objects. The method allowed them to precisely measure the volumes of the gas-filled chambers and overall weight.

In the end, the researchers found that three to five gas-filled shell chambers would have been sufficient to enable ammonites to swim freely in the water directly after hatching. The shell that the researchers examined had eleven chambers. With that said, more chambers develop the more that they develop. The findings do show that hatchling ammonites would not have been condemned to dwelling at the bottom of the ocean all of their lives.

The findings show not only a bit more about ammonites, but highlight this new technique. CT scanning is giving researchers a glimpse into the workings of ancient marine fossils, which may reveal further insights with time.

The findings are published in the journal Paleobiology.

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