Schiffs-Boote. Nautili

Title

Schiffs-Boote. Nautili

Description

Presentation of a nautilus shell

ca. 1750

Artist

Glassbach

Historical Description

The pearl boats are a family of cephalopods that comprises the last five species of the superorder Nautiloidea still living today in the genera Nautilus and Allonautilus, which is fossilised in a great abundance of species. The pearl boats differ from the other cephalopods living today, the squids, by a number of characteristics. One of the most striking features that distinguishes the nautiloids from the other cephalopods, the squids, is the spirally rolled-up, mostly whitish and brownish cross-striped outer shell - also called the shell - whose interior is chambered. . The chambers are separated from each other by arched, watch-glass-like partitions. In the centre of the chambered part of the shell runs a thin tissue tube with blood vessels running through it, through which liquid can be pumped out of the chambers to regulate buoyancy and an air-like gas mixture enriched with nitrogen and carbon dioxide can be released into the chambers. As is typical for cephalopods in general, pearl boats move with the help of the recoil principle. The recent species live in the western Pacific and in some areas of the Indian Ocean, exclusively in tropical areas and mainly on the slopes of reefs.