Abstract
Lower Eocene fluvial strata in the Chuckanut Formation preserve abundant bird and mammal tracks. Reptile trace fossils include footprints from a small turtle (ichnogenus Chelonipus), and several Crocodylian trackways that consist of irregularly spaced footprints associated with linear tail drag marks. The latter trackways represent “punting” locomotion, where a submerged Crocodylian used intermittent substrate contacts to provide forward motion of their neutrally buoyant bodies. Two adjacent sandstone blocks preserve Crocodylian trace fossils that are named herein as a new ichnogenus and ichnospecies Anticusuchipes amnis. Two other Crocodylian trackways lack sufficient detail for ichnotaxonomic assignment.
Highlights
County, Washington, USA (Figure 1, Table 1)
This paper describes reptile tracks; avian and mammalian trace fossils will be described in subsequent reports
Reptile trace fossils include preserved foundof ina1990 that contains and Crocodylian tracks that werea turtle trackway preserved in the slablandslide
Summary
These locations are in a forested area that has been subject to extensive commercial logging, where road construction yields new bedrock exposures. This paper describes reptile tracks; avian and mammalian trace fossils will be described in subsequent reports. These discoveries are noteworthy given the scarcity of reports of Cenozoic reptile tracks. The only known turtle tracks are two Eocene ichnospecies, Chelonipus chardronicus and C. parvus from Texas. Our report establishes a new Crocodylian ichnotaxon, Anticusuchipes amnis, and describes a turtle trackway as Chelonipus isp. Western Washington University (WWU)-KC-1 turtle trackway) and WWU-RCS-1 (Crocodylian tracks) sites.
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