Burrows of the Polychaetes Lepidenteron lewesiensis (Mantell, 1822) from the Upper Cretaceous of the Lower Volga Region

Burrows of the predatory polychaete Lepidenteron with scales and bones of small teleost fish are first discovered in the marine Upper Cretaceous (Turonian–Maastrichtian) of the Lower Volga region. All these burrows have a similar structure and belong to the ichnospecies Lepidenteron lewesiensis (Mantell, 1822). Bone remains and scales of teleost fish belonging to four taxa were found in the burrows: one Teleostei indet., two Clupeocephala indet. and one Dercetidae gen. indet. New finds of L. lewesiensis expand the paleogeographic distribution of this ichnogenus and ichnospecies in the Late Cretaceous, and complement our understanding of the Late Cretaceous marine paleoecosystems of this region.