Stipatoessa

Stipatoessa is a genus of extinct cephalopods belonging to the order Nautilida. These marine mollusks lived during the Devonian period, approximately 419 to 359 million years ago. They are characterized by their coiled, planispiral shells, which are commonly found as fossils in marine sedimentary rocks. The shell of Stipatoessa is typically ornamented with various types of surface features, which can include ribs, tubercles, or growth lines, though the specific details vary among species. The coiling of the shell is usually evolute, meaning that the earlier whorls are largely exposed. Like other nautiloids, Stipatoessa possessed a siphuncle, a tube that ran through the camerae (chambers) of the shell, allowing the animal to control its buoyancy by adjusting the amount of gas or liquid within these chambers. The precise diet and lifestyle of Stipatoessa are not fully understood, but it is presumed to have been a nektonic predator, swimming in the ancient seas. Fossil evidence indicates that Stipatoessa was distributed across various marine environments during the Devonian. The genus is important for understanding the diversity and evolution of cephalopods during this critical period in Earth's history. Research on Stipatoessa contributes to our knowledge of paleoecology and the fossil record of the Paleozoic Era.