Cameral deposits in Paleozoic cephalopods

Abstract

Abstract Calcareous cameral deposits have been described in several orthocerid and actinocerid nautiloids. According to the prevailing hypothesis, they were secreted during the lifetime of the animal, either by living tissues in the shell chambers, or by precipitation from the cameral liquid. In the present paper, cameral deposits are described in three species of Carboniferous orthocerid-like coleoid (Order Colorthocerida) from USA. The shell walls and septa in these coleoids are very thin and poorly calcified. In one half of the population of the three species, the septa are completely fragmented and there are no cameral deposits. In the other half of the population, the septa are partially fractioned and their surfaces are covered by well-developed cameral deposits. In contrast to the septa, the cameral deposits do not show any fractioning. To explain the origin of the cameral deposits, the following hypothetical scenario is the most realistic. After the death of the animals, the shells were accumulated on the sea floor and in one half of the population the septa became fully fractioned by the hydrostatic pressure. In shells of another half of the population, the septa were only partially fractioned. The calcifying bacteria entered the chambers of the dead shells through the porous connecting rings and gave rise to the cameral deposits.