Invertebrate Ichnology of Continental Freshwater Environments

This chapter reviews the present knowledge on freshwater ichnofaunas, essentially those produced by invertebrates, and evaluates the archetypal continental ichnofacies defined. Continental invertebrate ichnology has experienced a remarkable development during the past fifteen years. Extensive research has resulted in the construction of an expanding dataset and the proposal of archetypal ichnofacies. Also, the potential and limitations of the ichnofabric approach to the study of continental ichnofaunas have been addressed in a number of studies. Additionally, various studies attempt to evaluate temporal and spatial trends in trace fossil distribution. The chapter stresses the importance of a combined approach to the study of continental ichnofaunas in space and time, using sedimentologic, stratigraphic, paleoecologic, and paleobiologic datasets. Ichnofabric comprises all aspects of the texture and internal structure of a substrate that result from bioturbation and bioerosion at all scales. The ichnofabric approach became very popular during the last two decades, but still little is known about the nature and genesis of continental ichnofabrics.