World's Largest Nautilus Fossil Found in Rumelange

Luxembourg's National Museum of Natural History (Musée national d'histoire naturelle Luxembourg - MNHN), also known as the “natur musée”, has announced that the world’s largest Nautilus fossil (to date) was found in Rumelange.

Finding a nautilus fossil is relatively rare compared to other cephalopod fossils. The species belong to Mollusca, the second-largest primary subdivision of invertebrate animals, and live in the sea. A new species of Nautilus was found in Rumelange and it is named after the place where it was discovered: "Cenoceras rumelangense".

With a diametre of up to 610mm, Cenoceras rumelangense is the largest recorded Nautilus-fossil in the world to date. The holotype (original specimen that describes the species) and the majority of the paratypes (other specimens of this species) are from the collection of the natur musée. Robert Weis and Julian Wittische from the MNHN have described the specimen in the Swiss Journal of Paleontology together with Günter Schweigert from the Stuttgart-based “Museum für Naturkunde”.

The holotype is the single original specimen that describes the entire species and is used as a reference for the other specimens of the same species, the museum noted. The holotype provides a general description and image for a particular kind of creature or plant. A paratype is also a specimen of the species, but it is not the first version of it. Paratypes are often collected at the same time and location as the holotype. Paratypes show more details concerning the small differences among the individuals of a species.