The chambered part of the shell is called a phragmocone. When caught the prey would be devoured by the Ammonites jaws located at the base of the tentacles between the eyes. Ammonites would silently stalk their prey then quickly extend their tentacles to grab it. They were predators (cephalopods) feeding on most living marine life including mollusks, fish even other cephalopods. They moved through the water by jet propulsion expelling water through a funnel like opening to propel themselves in the opposite direction. Ammonites lived in shallow waters of 100 meters or less. The largest ever found was in Germany (6.5 feet in diameter). They also grew quickly with the females growing up to 400% larger then the males because they needed the larger shell for egg production. They fed on plankton and quickly assumed a strong protective outer shell. If an ammonite is found in clay the clay will preserve the Ammonites mother-of-pearl luster.ДЄmmonites began life very tiny, less then 1mm in diameter, and were vulnerable to attack from predators. Because of their rapid evolution and wide spread distribution they are an excellent tool for indexing and dating rocks. And come in every naturally occurring color. Then they began to thrive from the Jurassic period until the end of the Cretaceous period when all species of ammonites became extinct.ДЄmmonite fossils are found on every continent. They went on to flourish throughout the Triassic period, but at the end of this period (206 million years ago) all but one species died.

The first during the Permian period (250million years ago), only 10% survived. During their evolution three catastrophic events occurred. Ammonites with a name coming from the Greek ram-horned God called Ammon are the most widely known fossil they are cephalopods and first appeared in the seas 415 million years ago, in the form of a straight shelled creature known as Bacrites.

Largest ammonite