HISTORY OF CLASSIFICATION. 19 



CLAS.SIF1C'ATK)X OF PAL,EOZt)K' A31M()NOII>S. 



Formerly all Paleozoic aiiimonoids were classified as Goniatites, with 

 the exception of Cli/iueiiia, which was at first sui)[)osed to be a nautiloid. 

 As more forms became known, the unwieldiness of the genus Goniatites was 

 recognized by Beyricli, " wlio subdivided it as follows: l,Nautilini [Anarcestes 

 and 3fi)noceras']; 2, Siniplices [Tornoceras, Ayanides, and I'rionoceras]; 3, 

 Aeqiiales [Sporadoccras and Frolecanites']; 4, Trregulares [Beloceras]; 5, 

 Priiiiordiah'S [GepJn/roceras']; ('>, Carhnnarii [(rli/pirioreras^ Goniatites s. str., 

 and Gastrioceras^. 



Afterwards another classification was attempted by G. and F. Sand- 

 berger/' who established the following subdivisions: 1, Linguati \_Sandherg- 

 eroceras'] ; 2, Lauceohiti zz [Aeqimles p. p. Beyrich] ; 3, Genufracfi := [ Carhoiiarii 

 Beyricli]; 4, Senatizz[frrefjulares Beyrich]; 5, Crenati^\_Frimordiales 

 Bevrich]: 6, Acutolafcralcs [^Faeuercras']; 1, MagnoscUares^[^Svmplices Bey- 

 rich]; 8, Xaittitiui^[Xautiliiii Beyrich]. 



The divisions of Beyrich and those of the Sandbergers were not 

 intended to represent genera, and they mostly contain heterogeneous ele- 

 ments. At that time even the old genus Ammonites, compi'ising several 

 times as many species as Goniatites and species much more \ arious in form, 

 was still considered a unit. 



Goniatites was supposed to difter fundamentally from Ammonites, 

 although it was known to L. von Buch and Quenstedt that the ammo- 

 nites in their youth went through a goniatite stage of growth; but since 

 these forms were all supposed to be special creations, this phenomenon 

 was not connected with the idea of evolution, and had no effect on classifi- 

 cation. 



The first attempt to distinguish genera among the goniatites was made 

 by Dr. E. von Mojsisovics'' in 1882, who named Anarcestes, Pinacites, Pro- 

 norites, Prolecanites, and Pericyclus, bringing- them into rather fanciful rela- 

 tionships to his genera of Triassic ammonites. . 



The first systematic attempt to group all goniatites in families and 

 genera was by Hyatt in his Genera of Fossil Cephalopods, where they were 

 classified as follows:'' Famih" 1, Nautilinidse, including Mimoceras Hyatt, 



"Beitr. z Kennt. Rhein. Ueberirangsgeb. ' Cephalop. Mediterraneu Triasprovinz. 



''Verstein. Rheinischen Schichtensvstems in Nassau. ''Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., Vol. XXII. 



