Size of the fossils about 8cm
Orthoceras were the first representatives of the nautiloids with a cylindrical, mostly straight shell, which was divided into segments. The polished Orthoceras stands out particularly beautifully from the natural parent rock.
In desert areas south of the Moroccan Atlas Mountains, wind and strong temperature fluctuations have exposed the gray Devonian limestones and the orthoceras they contain. Preserved as fossils is the conical housing of the animals, which they used similar to the snails their shell, for retreat.
Phylum: Molluscs
Class: Cephalopods
Order: Orthocerida
Geological age: about 300 million years ago
Locality: Erfoud, Anti-Atlas Mountains, Morocco