Gnathichnus

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Gnathichnus pentax echinoid trace fossil on an oyster from the Cenomanian of Hamakhtesh Hagadol, southern Israel.

Oral surface of Strongylocentrotus purpuratus showing the teeth of the Aristotle's Lantern, which can make the trace Gnathichnus.

Gnathichnus is a trace fossil on a hard substrate (typically a shell, rock or hardground made of calcium carbonate) formed by regular echinoids as they scraped the surface with their five-toothed Aristotle's Lantern feeding structures (Bromley, 1975).

References

Bromley, R.G. (1975). "Comparative analysis of fossil and recent echinoid bioerosion". Palaeontology 18: 725–739.

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