Nummulite
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Extinct (fossil)
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A nummulite is a large lenticular fossil, recognized by its numerous coils, subdivided by incomplete septae into squarish chambers. They are the shells of the extinct marine protozoan Nummulites, a type of foraminiferan. Nummulites reach 6 cm or 2.4 inches in diameter, and are common in Tertiary rocks, particularly around the Mediterranean (e.g. Eocene limestones from Egypt). They are valuable as index fossils.
The name nummulite comes from the Latin nummulus meaning "little coin", a reference to their shape. In 1913, Randolph Kirkpatrick published a book, The Nummulosphere: an account of the Organic Origin of so-called Igneous Rocks and Abyssal Red Clays, proposing the theory that all rocks have been constructed by the accumulation of forams such as nummulites.
[edit] References
- 'Nummulite', Tiscali dictionary of animals [1], retrieved 17 August 2004
