Shell borings of sessile epibiontic organisms as palaeoecological guides (with examples from the Dutch coast)
Boekschoten, G.J. (1966). Shell borings of sessile epibiontic organisms as palaeoecological guides (with examples from the Dutch coast). Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol. 2: 333–379. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0031-0182(66)90023-X
In: Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. Elsevier: Amsterdam; Tokyo; Oxford; New York. ISSN 0031-0182; e-ISSN 1872-616X, more
|  |
| Abstract |
Fossil and Recent shells from Dutch beaches and the bottom of the Adriatic Sea show borings which are attributed to marine Cyanophyta, Porifera, Annelida, Bryozoa, Mollusca and Arthropoda. Altogether a dozen different boring systems are found in the shells, two of which are reworked from the Eocene. The fauna is meagre because suitable environments are scarce. Some fossil examples from the Tertiary are also discussed. The importance of shell borings study for palaeoecological purposes is stressed; fossils may occur with or without borings, depending on epibiontic or endobiontic habits; borings can indicate the living position of the shell-bearing host; the boring organisms themselves are often restricted to particular environments; the post-mortem history of reworked skeletal material can be retraced. |
|
