Ontogenetic Trends of Sutural Complexity in Jurassic Ammonites
Ontogenetic sequencing of suture fractal dimensions from a single ammonite specimen was not previously accessible without extreme measures. The necessity for destruction of the full conch due to whorl overlap or, alternatively, the prohibitively expensive or inaccessible imaging equipment for use by...
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MDPI AG
2022-01-01
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| Series: | Geosciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/12/2/66 |
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| author | Katherine Marriott Sara Olson Daniella Balassa Casey Cleaveland Kristin I. Watmore Rhiannon J. LaVine Robert Olson Donald R. Prothero |
| author_facet | Katherine Marriott Sara Olson Daniella Balassa Casey Cleaveland Kristin I. Watmore Rhiannon J. LaVine Robert Olson Donald R. Prothero |
| author_sort | Katherine Marriott |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Ontogenetic sequencing of suture fractal dimensions from a single ammonite specimen was not previously accessible without extreme measures. The necessity for destruction of the full conch due to whorl overlap or, alternatively, the prohibitively expensive or inaccessible imaging equipment for use by paleontologists has led to this rich source of data remaining elusive. Tracings of ontogenetic sequences of sutures have rarely been published since the middle of the last century. These studies only focused on the outermost whorl of a given specimen or composited several specimens. Oftentimes, they focused only on the umbilical and juvenile stages of shell growth. Complete or multi-whorled ontogenetic sequences, including those of subadult and mature specimens, are especially uncommon. Using methods published in 2021 to address the accessibility problem in sutural ontogenies, our paper represents the first comparisons of the fractal trajectories of ammonoids and includes several significant Jurassic ammonite families. We found that ammonite sutures did not steadily increase in complexity, as was previously suggested. Instead, juvenile ammonoids were more likely to exhibit ups and downs in their fractal ontogeny. We also found that pathologies must be considered as extremely common phenomena for ammonoids. Finally, we explored the ways that the unsteady ontogenetic trends of fractal complexity in ammonoids offer insights into the formation mechanism of ammonoid septa. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T21:50:35Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1ecda84eb7f14854a881706595bc5d0e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3263 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T21:50:35Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
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| series | Geosciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-1ecda84eb7f14854a881706595bc5d0e2023-11-23T20:06:27ZengMDPI AGGeosciences2076-32632022-01-011226610.3390/geosciences12020066Ontogenetic Trends of Sutural Complexity in Jurassic AmmonitesKatherine Marriott0Sara Olson1Daniella Balassa2Casey Cleaveland3Kristin I. Watmore4Rhiannon J. LaVine5Robert Olson6Donald R. Prothero7Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, NY 11210, USADepartment of Geological Sciences, Cal State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Geological Sciences, Cal State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Geological Sciences, Cal State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Geological Sciences, Cal State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Pomona, CA 91768, USABiodiversity Institute, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USADepartment of Geological Sciences, Cal State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Geological Sciences, Cal State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Pomona, CA 91768, USAOntogenetic sequencing of suture fractal dimensions from a single ammonite specimen was not previously accessible without extreme measures. The necessity for destruction of the full conch due to whorl overlap or, alternatively, the prohibitively expensive or inaccessible imaging equipment for use by paleontologists has led to this rich source of data remaining elusive. Tracings of ontogenetic sequences of sutures have rarely been published since the middle of the last century. These studies only focused on the outermost whorl of a given specimen or composited several specimens. Oftentimes, they focused only on the umbilical and juvenile stages of shell growth. Complete or multi-whorled ontogenetic sequences, including those of subadult and mature specimens, are especially uncommon. Using methods published in 2021 to address the accessibility problem in sutural ontogenies, our paper represents the first comparisons of the fractal trajectories of ammonoids and includes several significant Jurassic ammonite families. We found that ammonite sutures did not steadily increase in complexity, as was previously suggested. Instead, juvenile ammonoids were more likely to exhibit ups and downs in their fractal ontogeny. We also found that pathologies must be considered as extremely common phenomena for ammonoids. Finally, we explored the ways that the unsteady ontogenetic trends of fractal complexity in ammonoids offer insights into the formation mechanism of ammonoid septa.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/12/2/66ammonitesammonoidammonite suturesontogenyevolutionfunctional morphology |
| spellingShingle | Katherine Marriott Sara Olson Daniella Balassa Casey Cleaveland Kristin I. Watmore Rhiannon J. LaVine Robert Olson Donald R. Prothero Ontogenetic Trends of Sutural Complexity in Jurassic Ammonites Geosciences ammonites ammonoid ammonite sutures ontogeny evolution functional morphology |
| title | Ontogenetic Trends of Sutural Complexity in Jurassic Ammonites |
| title_full | Ontogenetic Trends of Sutural Complexity in Jurassic Ammonites |
| title_fullStr | Ontogenetic Trends of Sutural Complexity in Jurassic Ammonites |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ontogenetic Trends of Sutural Complexity in Jurassic Ammonites |
| title_short | Ontogenetic Trends of Sutural Complexity in Jurassic Ammonites |
| title_sort | ontogenetic trends of sutural complexity in jurassic ammonites |
| topic | ammonites ammonoid ammonite sutures ontogeny evolution functional morphology |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/12/2/66 |
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