Rhyncholites (cephalopod mandibles) from the late triassic (norian) of new zealand and new caledonia

Abstract

Fossils attributable to the parataxon Rhyncolite, described as Rhyncolite maorica n. sp., have been collected from Norian rocks (late Oretian and Otamitan local stages) of the New Zealand-New Caledonia region. They are found in faunas with Proclydonautilus, including P. mandevillei (Marshall), and may represent the upper mandible of that nautiloid. Rhyncholites are uncommon fossils and their presence in late Triassic sequences in the southwest Pacific is recorded for the first time. © 1991 Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand.