The ammonite body-chamber, with special reference to the buoyancy and mode of Life of the living ammonite

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Abstract
I. Introduction In many works relating to the classification and morphology of ammonites reference has been made to the length of the body-chamber and to the form of the mouth border. There have been numerous attempts to use these features as a basis for the classification of the ammonites and almost equally numerous suggestions that they are practically valueless for this purpose. It is not proposed to give detailed references to this very extensive literature. It may. however, be remarked that, following Suess (1865), Haug in 1898 drew attention to the view that the ammonites could be grouped into those with long and those with short body-chambers and proposed to refer to these as the longidome and brevidome forms. A similar classification was adopted by G. von Arthaber (1911). Doubt as to the value of this basis of classification was expressed by several authorities, including Wedekind (1913, 1916), but the most complete summary of the facts then available regarding the lengths of ammonite body-chambers was published by Diener (1916), who pointed out the variations in the lengths of body-chambers occurring in ammonites which were held to be closely related; Diener also gave particulars of the lengths of body-chamber in a wide range of ammonites of different ages. It is familiar that the lengths of ammonite body-chambers vary greatly; in some species the length is not more than a half whorl, while in others it is commonly more than a whorl, and in some cases more than one and a half

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