Dentalium saturniGoldfuss, 1841 (Eifeliari: Mollusca): complex issues from a simple fossil

The specimen commonly thought to be the holotype ofDentalium saturni Goldfuss, 1841, does not match the published drawings and is presumed to be spurious. That fossil is incomplete and lacks critical detail to demonstrate that it is a member of the class Scaphopoda, for its curvature and fine longitudinal ribbing can be duplicated among nautiloid Cephalopoda; the relatively thin shell of the specimen suggests Support for that possible reassignment. The drawing of the type has widely spaced, coarse lirae, but also does not show features which conclusively link it to the Scaphopoda. This Ornament is similar to that of livingDentalium, but is equally similar to that of several Carboniferous nautiloid genera. The homeomorphy between a broken scaphopod and a broken body Chamber of a curved nautiloid indicates the danger of too precise assignment of poor specimens. It is concluded that there is no satisfactory proof of the occurrence of Scaphopoda in the Devonian.