A note on the trace fossil Beaconites barretti in the Old Red Sandstone of County Dublin, Ireland

Large, well displayed, straight sinuous and curved endichnial burrows have been recorded in abundance on Shenick's Island, Skerries, Co. Dublin. They occur in sedimentary breccias, interpreted as subaerial debris flow deposits of Old Red Sandstone facies but probable Lower Carboniferous age. The traces are mainly concordant with bedding and have a pronounced meniscus structure. They are considered to be Beaconites barretti Bradshaw and were produced by locomotary back-packing, probably by large arthropods or by vertebrates. The occurrence is significant in that the trace is present in considerably coarser sediment than that which hosts most previously reported examples of Beaconites from the British Isles.