Lingulid brachiopods and Lingulichnus from a Silurian shelf–slope carbonate sequence, Delorme Group, Mackenzie Mountains, Northwest Territories

Abstract

Structures assigned to the ichnogenus Lingulichnus, commonly containing the burrow-forming brachiopod, were collected from an argillaceous unit in a Silurian shelf dolostone sequence (Delorme Group). The sediments, benthic fauna, and inclined orientation of all lingulid burrows indicate the presence of a bottom current and restricted conditions on the margin of the Selwyn Basin. High-abundance–low-diversity faunas of lingulids and Lingulichnus are indicative of limiting conditions at the substrate surface. Under low-energy conditions, they seem to be indicative of the Zoophycos ichnofacies.