Description
Genuine Amauropsina Fossil Gastropod
This carefully chosen fossil is a genuine specimen of Amauropsina sp., an extinct marine gastropod from Upper Cretaceous deposits in Burgos, Castile and León, Spain. It dates from the Cenomanian Stage, approximately 93.9 to 100.5 million years ago, when extensive warm seas covered parts of the Iberian Peninsula.
The abbreviation “sp.” indicates that the fossil has been identified confidently to the genus Amauropsina, while a precise species-level identification has not been assigned. This is common with fossil gastropods when diagnostic shell features are concealed by matrix, affected by preservation or represented by an internal mould.
The listing photographs show the actual fossil specimen you will receive. This is not a stock photograph or a representative example. Please inspect all images carefully for the specimen’s exact shape, natural colour, preservation, visible shell features and surrounding matrix. Full sizing and scale information can be seen in the photographs.
Fossil Identification and Classification
Scientific identification: Amauropsina sp.
Fossil type: Gastropod or fossil sea snail
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Caenogastropoda
Order: Littorinimorpha
Superfamily: Naticoidea
Family: Naticidae
Genus: Amauropsina
Geological period: Cretaceous
Epoch: Upper Cretaceous
Stage: Cenomanian
Locality: Burgos, Castile and León, Spain
The extinct genus Amauropsina was formally established in 1885 and is generally placed among the naticid gastropods. Naticids are commonly called moon snails and are characterised by compact, spirally coiled shells with rounded whorls and a prominent body chamber.
Gastropod Shell Morphology
Gastropods are molluscs distinguished by a single shell that grows around a central axis. Each complete turn of the shell is called a whorl, and the sequence of earlier whorls forms the spire. The final and usually largest turn is known as the body whorl, which contained most of the living animal.
Fossils attributed to Amauropsina commonly display a compact, rounded or globose shell form. The spire may be relatively low, while the body whorl is enlarged and smoothly convex. Depending on preservation, the specimen may retain part of its original shell surface or occur as a natural internal mould formed when sediment entered the empty shell and later hardened.
Features potentially visible on a preserved gastropod include the coiled whorls, sutures separating adjacent whorls, the apex of the spire, the expanded body whorl and part of the aperture through which the living animal extended. Fine growth lines may record successive stages in the enlargement of the shell.
Natural matrix attachment, mineral staining, weathered surfaces, small fractures, incomplete margins and variations in shell detail are normal characteristics of genuine fossils. These features reflect the specimen’s long history of growth, burial, mineralisation, geological disturbance and eventual exposure.
Cenomanian Geology of Burgos
The province of Burgos contains extensive Cretaceous sedimentary rocks associated with the northern part of the Iberian Peninsula. During the Cenomanian, marine waters advanced across broad areas of the region, creating carbonate platforms and shallow shelf environments in which limestone, marl, sand and shell-rich sediment accumulated.
The Cenomanian represents the earliest stage of the Upper Cretaceous. Global sea levels were exceptionally high during this interval, and many continental margins were covered by warm, relatively shallow seas. These conditions supported diverse communities of molluscs, echinoids, brachiopods, ammonites, bivalves, corals and other marine organisms.
Sedimentary rocks in the Burgos region preserve evidence of changing water depth, seabed energy and sediment supply. Some beds formed in protected marine settings where fine carbonate mud accumulated, while others reflect stronger currents capable of transporting sand, broken shells and other biological debris.
Upper Cretaceous Marine Environment
Amauropsina was a marine gastropod that lived on or partly within the seabed. As a naticid-type sea snail, it was adapted to life on soft sediment and possessed a broad muscular foot used for movement and burrowing. Its compact shell protected the soft body while allowing the animal to travel through loose sand or carbonate mud.
Naticid gastropods are widely recognised as active benthic molluscs. Many representatives were predatory and fed upon other shelled animals, particularly bivalves and smaller gastropods. They could use a specialised rasping structure called a radula to penetrate prey shells. This feeding behaviour sometimes produced smooth, circular boreholes that can be preserved in fossil shells.
After death, the gastropod’s soft tissues decayed and its shell rested on the seabed. Sediment could fill the empty interior, producing a natural cast of the shell cavity. Continued burial protected the remains, while pressure and mineral-rich groundwater transformed the surrounding sediment into rock. The original shell material could remain, recrystallise or dissolve away and leave the hardened internal mould behind.
Collectable Spanish Gastropod Fossil
This genuine Amauropsina fossil combines an identifiable gastropod genus with the important Upper Cretaceous geology of Burgos. Its Cenomanian age and Spanish provenance make it an appealing addition to a gastropod collection, Cretaceous fossil display, European fossil collection, geological cabinet or educational resource.
The specimen is also suitable as a distinctive natural-history gift for a fossil collector, palaeontology enthusiast, geology student, teacher or anyone interested in prehistoric marine life. Fossil gastropods are particularly attractive display pieces because their spiral construction remains immediately recognisable despite their immense geological age.
Every fossil is naturally unique. Differences in whorl shape, spire preservation, exposed surface detail, mineral colour and matrix coverage give each specimen its own individual appearance and collectable character.
Actual Specimen and Full Sizing
The fossil shown in the listing photographs is the exact specimen you will receive. It has been carefully selected for its natural appearance, recognisable gastropod form and geological interest.
Please refer to the photographs for full sizing. The images provide the most accurate representation of the specimen’s dimensions, condition, preservation, visible morphology and remaining matrix.
Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee
This fossil is a genuine natural specimen and includes a generic Certificate of Authenticity card with a lifetime authenticity guarantee. The certificate confirms that the item is supplied as a real fossil rather than a modern cast, replica or artificial reproduction.
The specimen will be carefully and securely packaged to help protect it during transit.
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