The Role of Trace Fossils in Palaeoecology
The find
out about of hint fossils (ichnology) is extraordinarily necessary to
palaeoecology for three reasons. Firstly, hint fossils are conservative; the
identical kinds of traces are intimately related with positive sedimentary
environments in the course of geological time. Secondly, hint fossils are
commonly determined in situ, and are consequently more reliable symptoms of the
proper dwelling communities than physique fossils, which are often transformed
or transported. Thirdly, hint fossils can be illustrative of the presence of gentle...
bodied organisms in an environment, and in some instances may also be the
solely fossil report inside a given sedimentary environment. Clearly, trace fossils
are regular in demonstrating the undertaking of organisms in direct
relationship with their sedimentary environments. The outcomes of the trace
producers in disturbing the sedimentary material thru burrowing are generally
referred to as bioturbation.
Trace
producers had been issues to the equal vary of limiting elements as any other organisms,
and these have decided the abundance and range of hint fossils. Specific hint
fossil assemblages, referred to as ichnofacies, can frequently be associated with
positive sedimentary facies suggestive of normal manipulate with the aid of
specific limiting factors, such as salinity or oxygenation. For example, at
least 4 assemblages of marine hint fossils appear to have a relationship with
depth and substrate throughout geological history, and hence a collection of
depth-related ichnofacies have been decided. In these and different cases, the
learn about of the abundance and range of the hint fossil assemblage can be
used as a sort of yardstick with which to measure the depth of operation of a
given limiting factor. Working examples of this manner are mentioned in Part m
of this book.