''Planolites'' is an

ichnogenus An ichnotaxon (plural ichnotaxa) is "a taxon based on the fossilized work of an organism", i.e. the non-human equivalent of an artifact. ''Ichnotaxa'' comes from the Greek ίχνος, ''ichnos'' meaning ''track'' and ταξις, ''taxis'' meaning ...

found throughout the

Ediacaran The Ediacaran Period ( ) is a geological period that spans 96 million years from the end of the Cryogenian Period 635 million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Cambrian Period 538.8 Mya. It marks the end of the Proterozoic Eon, and t ...

and the

Phanerozoic The Phanerozoic Eon is the current geologic eon in the geologic time scale, and the one during which abundant animal and plant life has existed. It covers 538.8 million years to the present, and it began with the Cambrian Period, when anima ...

that is made during the feeding process of

worm Worms are many different distantly related bilateral animals that typically have a long cylindrical tube-like body, no limbs, and no eyes (though not always). Worms vary in size from microscopic to over in length for marine polychaete worm ...

-like animals. The traces are generally small, , unlined, and rarely branched, with fill that differs from the host rock.

Distribution

''Planolites'' fossils have been found in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

, and the Americas (though many more specimens have been found in North America).

Ichnospecies

Ichnospecies in ''Planolites'' include: *''P. annularis'' Walcott, 1890 *''P. annularius'' Walcott, 1890 *''P. ballandus'' Webby, 1970 *''P. beverleyensis'' Billings, 1862 *''P. incipiens'' (Billings, 1861) *''P. montanus'' Richter, 1937 *''P. reticulatus'' Alpert, 1975 *''P. serpens'' Webby, 1970 *''P. striatus'' (

Hall In architecture, a hall is a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age and early Middle Ages in northern Europe, a mead hall was where a lord and his retainers ate and also slept. Later in the Middle Ages, the gr ...

, 1852) *''P. terraenovae'' Fillion and Pickerill, 1990 *''P. virgatus'' (Hall, 1847)

References

Trace fossils Ediacaran life Fossils of Antarctica Fossils of Argentina Fossils of Austria Fossils of Canada Paleozoic life of British Columbia Paleozoic life of Newfoundland and Labrador Paleozoic life of Quebec Fossils of China Fossils of the Czech Republic Fossils of Denmark Fossils of Egypt Fossils of France Fossils of Germany Fossils of Greenland Fossils of India Fossils of Kazakhstan Fossils of Mexico Fossils of Morocco Fossils of Norway Fossils of Poland Fossils of Russia Fossils of Spain Fossils of South Africa Fossils of Switzerland Fossils of Tunisia Fossils of Great Britain Fossils of the United States Fossil taxa described in 1873 {{Ediacaran-stub

Distribution

Ichnospecies

See also

References