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Veenma et al., 2026

Charnia and other late Ediacaran macrofossils preserved in turbiditic deposits of the Indreelva Member (Finnmark, Norway)

Veenma, Y. P., McMahon, W. J., Liu, A. G., Ebbestad, J. O. R., Grundvåg, S., Högström, A. E. S., Høyberget, M., Jensen, S., Davies, N. S.
DOI
DOI10.1111/pala.70082
Year2026
JournalPalaeontology
Volume69
Number5
Typearticle in journal
LanguageEnglish
Id54584

Abstract

The fossil genus Charnia is emblematic of the evolutionary expansion of metazoans during the late Ediacaran. The first discovery of Charnia specimens from Scandinavia is here reported, alongside new examples of Palaeopascichnus , Aspidella ‐type holdfasts, and possible scratch circles. These fossils are preserved within the turbiditic deposits of the Indreelva Member of the Stáhpogieddi Formation (Vestertana Group, Arctic Norway). One Charnia specimen exhibits angular ridges along its first‐order branches, resulting in ‘keeled’ circumferences that deviate from the more typical bulbous morphology of other Charnia fossils. The three‐dimensional preservation of this specimen is attributed to a short transport path, entrainment within a relatively cohesive flow, and burial within its clay‐rich deposit. Further, new assemblages of Palaeopascichnus exhibit two species, two preservation styles, and a self‐overprinting arrangement, resulting from small‐scale taphonomic variability and time‐averaging on individual surfaces. Collectively, the fossil assemblage of the Indreelva Member resembles other ‘Fermeuse‐style’ Ediacaran turbidite successions that more commonly preserve holdfast structures than associated body fossils, a pattern here interpreted as the polygenetic result of ecological, sedimentary‐taphonomic, structural, and outcrop‐geomorphic controls. The discoveries corroborate the widespread palaeogeographic distribution of Charnia and position the Vestertana Group as an increasingly informative archive of Neoproterozoic to early Cambrian evolution.

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