''Mosirites'' is a genus of anisoceratid

ammonite Ammonoids are extinct, (typically) coiled-shelled cephalopods comprising the subclass Ammonoidea. They are more closely related to living octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish (which comprise the clade Coleoidea) than they are to nautiluses (family N ...

from Hobetsu in

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

; North Japan. The type species is ''Mosirites mirabilis'', known from multiple partial and complete specimens.

Description

''Mosirites'' is known from multiple specimens which were described in 2023 by Shigeta ''et al''., (2023). The

holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...

, HMG-2412 has a maximum diameter of , and consists of a

phragmocone The phragmocone is the chambered portion of the shell of a cephalopod. It is divided by septa into camerae. In most nautiloids and ammonoids, the phragmocone is a long, straight, curved, or coiled structure, in which the camerae are linked by ...

and a part of the body chamber with length of about 150°.

Etymology

The generic name, ''Mosirites'', is derived from the Ainu word for peaceful land or

, and the suffix "-ites" which is common in ammonite genera. The type species' specific name, ''mirabilis'', is a Latin word for amazing, and refers to its amazing and wonderful form. The second species' specific name, ''serpentiformis'', derives from the Latin words 'serpens' and 'forma' and refers to its snake-like form.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q121184406 Ammonites Mesozoic cephalopods Mollusc subclasses Taxa described in 2023 Fossil taxa described in 2023