Journal
PALAEOWORLD
Volume 22, Issue 1-2, Pages 52-67Publisher
ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV
DOI: 10.1016/j.palwor.2012.12.001
Keywords
Aestivation burrows; Lungfish; Amphibian; Palaeoclimatology; Eocene/Oligocene; South-eastern France
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Funding
- CNRS [UMR 5125]
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Enigmatic biogenic structures are reported from the Palaeogene of south-eastern France in the Castellane-Blieux area (Alpes de Haute-Provence French Department). They occur at the Eocene/Oligocene transition at the top of the Marnes Bleues Formation, which corresponds to a clearly defined regressive sequence, where thick marls are overlain by lacustrine limestones or sandstones. The marls have abundant shallow marine fauna and the upper part of the Formation corresponds to a rapid transition to non-marine deposits. The studied structures exhibit three main morphologies: vertical shafts, furrows, and tunnels. They can also form dense clusters and cross-cut marginal marine crustacean burrows such as Psilonichnus. By comparison with modern and fossil examples, these trace fossils are interpreted as probably aestivation burrows. The possible trace-makers could be lungfish (in particular for the common vertical burrows) or amphibians (for the furrows and tunnels). The occurrence of these different aestivation burrows defines the border of a basin and probably indicates increasing droughts on the coastal plain. This could reflect the well-known development of arid conditions in south-eastern France at the beginning of the Oligocene. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. and Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, CAS. All rights reserved.
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