Nummulite

Nummulite
Nummulites
Temporal range: Tertiary
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Rhizaria
Phylum: Foraminifera
Class: Granuloreticulosa
Order: Rotaliida
Superfamily: Nummulitacea
Family: Nummulitidae
Genus: Nummulites
Lamarck, 1801
Species

Numerous
Fossil nummulitid foraminiferans showing microspheric and megalospheric individuals; Eocene of the United Arab Emirates; scale in mm.
Fossil Nummulites in Urbasa, Basque Country

A nummulite is a large lenticular fossil, characterized by its numerous coils, subdivided by septa into chambers. They are the shells of the fossil and present-day marine protozoan Nummulites, a type of foraminiferan. Nummulites commonly reach 6 cm (2.4 inches) in diameter, and are common in Tertiary marine rocks, particularly around the Mediterranean (e.g. Eocene limestones from Egypt). Fossils up to 6 inches wide are found in the Middle Eocene rocks of Turkey.2 They are valuable as index fossils.

NummuliteLyd.jpg

The name "Nummulites" is a diminutive form of 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.

References

  • 'Nummulite', Tiscali Dictionary of Animals [1], retrieved 17 August 2004
  • 2. 'Biggest Microbes', Guinness World Records 2001, p. 153.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • nummulite — [ nymylit ] n. f. • 1801; du lat. nummulus ♦ Paléont. Foraminifère fossile à coquille ronde, divisée en loges spiralées, très abondant au début du tertiaire (éocène). ● nummulite nom féminin (latin nummulus, petit écu) Foraminifère fossile, dont… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Nummulite — Num mu*lite, n. [L. nummus a coin + lite: cf. F. nummulite.] (Paleon.) A fossil of the genus {Nummulites} and allied genera. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • nummulite — [num′yo͞o līt΄] n. [< L nummus, a coin (see NUMMULAR) + LITE] any of a genus (Nummulites) of nearly extinct foraminifera with a somewhat coin shaped shell nummulitic [num′yo͞olit′ik] adj …   English World dictionary

  • nummulite — nummulitic /num yeuh lit ik/, adj. /num yeuh luyt /, n. a fossil foraminifer of the genus Camerina (Nummulites), having a calcareous, usually disklike shell. [1805 15; NUMMUL(AR) + ITE1] * * * ▪ paleontology       any of the thousands of extinct… …   Universalium

  • nummulite — num·mu·lì·te s.f. TS paleont. protozoo marino del genere Nummulite, fossile dell Eocene, il cui guscio dalla tipica forma di disco è un costituente di molte rocce calcaree | con iniz. maiusc., genere della famiglia dei Nummulitidi {{line}}… …   Dizionario italiano

  • NUMMULITE — n. f. T. de Géologie Fossile en forme de spirale, qui compose souvent des roches entières …   Dictionnaire de l'Academie Francaise, 8eme edition (1935)

  • Nummulite — Nummulitidae Nummulitidae …   Wikipédia en Français

  • nummulite — noun A protozoan from the Tertiary period, known only as fossils …   Wiktionary

  • nummulite — (nu mmu li t ; d après Legoarant, on doit prononcer no mmu li t ) s. f. Nom donné aux espèces fossiles du genre nummuline. Les nummulites ont été d abord appelées numismales et nummulées. ÉTYMOLOGIE    Voy. nummulaire …   Dictionnaire de la Langue Française d'Émile Littré

  • nummulite — {{hw}}{{nummulite}}{{/hw}}s. f. Grande foraminifero fossile del Terziario, dal guscio calcareo e di forma simile a una moneta …   Enciclopedia di italiano

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