Fossils of the nautilus, a cephalopod mollusc, dating back 400 million years have been discovered in Xinglong County, in north China's Hebei Province.
According to experts, the nautilus fossils discovered in the Yanshan mountain range in north China were small molluscs which inhabited the ocean floor about 400 million years ago. The mollusk had gills and was covered with a spiral shell.
The nautilus fossils were found in a limestone surface near a limestone cave in the highest peak of Yanshan Mountain.
Experts noted that the discovery is extremely valuable to the study of the evolution of geology, topography and biology and has aroused the attention of archaeologists from Britain, the United States and Japan.
(Xinhua News Agency April 29, 2003)
