Arthropod tracks from the Furongian (Upper Cambrian) of the Wiśniówka Wielka (Holy Cross Mountains) and their taphonomy: a preliminary report

Previous works on arthropod trace fossils from the Furongian (Upper Cambrian) section exposed at theWioeniówkaWielka quarry (Holy Cross Mountains, Poland) focused on trilobite-made structures referred to as Rusophycus polonicus and Cruziana semiplicata. Arthropod trackways did not receive much attention. The present paper contains preliminary data on new records of arthropod trackways from the Furongian of the Wioeniówka Wielka section and on their taphonomy. The material studied comprises undetermined arthropod tracks and specimens belonging to three ichnogenera: ?Asaphoidichnus, Diplichnites and Petalichnus

Rusophycus inexpectus isp. nov. from the Furongian (Upper Cambrian) of the Holy Cross Mountains (Poland

A new trace fossil Rusophycus inexpectus isp. nov. is described from the Furongian (Upper Cambrian) strata of the Holy Cross Mountains. This ichnospecies is probably non-trilobite in origin and is commonly preserved as an undertrace. This preservation style resembles that of Rusophycus ramellensis Legg, an index fossil of the Cambrian Series 3. Therefore, previous workers misinterpreted material from the Wiśniówka Sandstone Formation as Rusophycus ramellensis Legg (recorded by them as Cruziana barbata) and put the Cambrian Series 3 and Furongian boundary within this unit. Rusophycus inexpectus isp. nov differs from Rusophycus ramellensis Legg: 1) in having a smooth trapezoidal area behind the lobes; 2) in the presence of a direct contact between the endopodal lobes and cephalic margin imprints and 3) in the restriction of the occurrence of the endopodal lobes and scratches to the cephalic region of the trace fossil. Care must be taken, when dealing with the undertrace preservation style of Rusophycus ramellensis Legg in other assemblages, as it may represent Rusophycus inexpectus isp. nov

New data on the trace fossil, Cruziana semiplicata (Furongian, Wiśniówka Sandstone Formation, Poland) : origin, ethology and producer

Cruziana semiplicata Salter is a well known ichnospecies, ascribed to trilobites. Despite that, there are still contradicting views on its origin (infaunal vs. epifaunal), the ethology represented (crawling vs. feeding) and the identity of its producer (a few trilobite genera were proposed). In this paper, new data are presented and com- bined to create a coherent interpretative model for Cruziana semiplicata. According to this new model, Cruziana semiplicata is a fossilized version of an epifaunal, pascichnial (feeding) trace produced by an organism, positioned above the seabed with only a few frontal appendages touching the depositional surface and processing the sedi- ment below. This model is based on observations of trace fossil morphology and neoichnological observations of the feeding behaviour of Triops australiensis. Also, a short geometrical comparison with the co-occurring Rusophycus polonicus is made to show that these trace fossils most likely had different trace makers

Compaction-related style of Rusophycus preservation from Furongian (Upper Cambrian) of Holy Cross Mountains (Poland)

In general, the trace fossil Rusophycus, preserved as a concave-upward structure on the top of a bed, is considered to be a fossilized marking, made by a trace maker. The structures described from the Cambrian (Furongian) of central Poland are genetically related to Rusophycus. However, despite their occurrence on the tops of beds, they are not fossilized traces, but compaction-related features, resulting from differential sandstone and mudstone compaction with possible mediation by organic-rich, heterolithic sediments. The preservation of these structures probably was influenced by biofilms or biomats

Do ichnotaxonomic differences between lacertoid tracks from the Tumlin Sandstone reflect producer biotaxonomic differences?

TheTumlin Sandstone is an eolian unit of disputable age (Late Permian or Early Triassic), exposed at the north-western border of the Holy Cross Mts., Central Poland. It contains abundant and diversified invertebrate and vertebrate trace fossils. The present paper considers ichno-biodiversity relation of lacertoid tracks and their producers occurring in the considered unit. A neoichnological experiment indicates that the recent lacertoid, Pogona vitticeps can produce morphologically diversified tracks which in fossil record would possibly be ascribed to different ichnogenera. The recorded variability range is qualitatively comparable to that of lacertoid tracks from the Tumlin Sandstone. It is thus possible that morphologically diversified lacertoid ichnogenera from the Tumlin Sandstone were produced by a single species. In consequence, morphologically diversified lacertoid ichnogenera from the Tumlin Sandstone might not be the equivalents of anatomically differentiated animals

Upper Triassic vertebrate tracks from Kraków–Częstochowa Upland, southern Poland

The first Upper Triassic vertebrate fossil tracks are documented from the Zawiercie locality, Kraków–Częstochowa Upland, southern Poland. The most characteristic components of the assemblage are tracks, assig- nable to archosaurs and dicynodonts. The inferred composition of the fauna is comparable to those of much better studied, contemporaneous sites in Italy, Argentina and the USA