Trace fossils from the lower Cambrian Kløftelv Formation, Ella Ø, North-East Greenland

Jensen, S.; Harper, D.A.T.; Stouge, S.

Abstract

Relatively large burrows with crudely-developed spreiten, some arranged in a zig-zag pattern, occur in the Kløftelv Formation, Ella Ø, North-East Greenland. These trace fossils, tentatively identified as Teichichnus isp., are associated with sedimentary structures which include microbial mat-related sand cracks that support earlier interpretations of a near-shore marine setting for the formation. The combination of morphological features apparent in these trace fossils confirm previous assignments of the Kløftelv Formation to the Cambrian, but excluding the basal-most Cambrian. The Kløftelv Formation has been typically correlated with other siliciclastic units in the North Atlantic region with a comparable basal position in a transgressive succession, which in their upper parts have dense assemblages of Skolithos. These are interpreted to have formed during a rapid transgression over a low-angle passive margin of the Iapetus Ocean. The trace fossils described here also provide the first direct evidence that the lower part of the basal siliciclastics is of Cambrian age.

Citation

Jensen, S., Harper, D., & Stouge, S. (2016). Trace fossils from the lower Cambrian Kløftelv Formation, Ella Ø, North-East Greenland. GFF, 138(3), 369-376. https://doi.org/10.1080/11035897.2015.1076029

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 21, 2015
• Online Publication Date: Oct 16, 2015
• Publication Date: 2016-07
• Deposit Date: Oct 17, 2015
• Journal: GFF
• Print ISSN: 1103-5897
• Electronic ISSN: 2000-0863
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 138
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 369-376
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/11035897.2015.1076029
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1429038