Use of trace fossil in stratigraphy and Sedimentology
Use of trace fossil in stratigraphy and Sedimentology Trace fossils are characterized by long time range but narrow facies range. These characters together with the fact that trace fossils show no secondary displacement and often occur abundantly in rocks, which have only a few body fossils, make them invaluable for stratigraphic and sedimentological investigation. When preserved as surfacial features trace fossils help determining the depositional top of a sequence. Under suitable conditions trace fossils also provide clues to the physical and chemical conditions prevailing at the time of sedimentation. Following are some of the examples. Depositional Facies and Palaeo bathymetry The animals responsible for' generation of particular types of trace fossils are sensitive to environmental and bathymetric conditions. Following this clue Seilacher proposed that assemblages of trace fossils might be used for interpretation of depositional facies (,ichnof