Acanthocerataceae

Acanthocerataceae, or Acanthoceratoidea as renamed in more recent classificaions, is a superfamily of ammonoid cephalopods included in the Order Ammonitida that range from the Lower Albian to the Upper Cretaceous Maastrichtian.

Diagnosis
Acanthocerataceans are characterized by strongly ribbed shells with a tendency to develop prominent tubercles, but includes other forms including smooth oxycones as well.

Families
The Acanthocerataceae may include as many as 14 families, depending on the particular classification. The older Treatise (1957) includes 10, the Brancoceratidae, Flickiide, Lyelliceratide, Acanthoceratidae, Binneyitidae, Vascoceratidae, Tissotiidae, Coilopceratidae, Collignoniceratidae, and Sphenodiscidae in text sequence.

In some newer classifications, at least, the Binneyitidae are omitted, but the Leymeriellidae, Peroniceratidae, Prolyelliceratidae, and Pseudotissotiidae are variably added. The Peroniceratidae are separated from Collignoniceratidae where previously included as the Peroniceratinae. Likewise the Pseudotissotiidae are separated from the Tissotiidae where previously included as the Pseudotissotiinae, leaving the Tissotiidae equivalent to the older Tissotiinae. Fosbesiceratidae and Leymeriellidae were removed form Hoplitaceae and reassigned to the Acanthocerataceae.