Morphology, ethology and taxonomy of the ichnogenus Schaubcylindrichnus: Notes for clarification

Two recent publications dealing with the trace fossil Schaubcylindrichnus (Frey and Howard, 1981) in Cenozoic outcrops have been published independently in the same year (Löwemark and Hong, 2006; Nara, 2006). The two studies came to similar conclusions regarding morphology, somewhat different conclusions with respect to the behavior of the trace maker, and diametrically opposed conclusions regarding the ichnotaxonomy. The two studies (Löwemark & Hong, 2006; Nara, 2006) were published in parallel without taking the other into consideration. During the 2nd International Ichnological Congress in Krakow 2008 the authors had the opportunity to compare their results (Löwemark and Nara, 2008). We therefore feel that a clarifying note is timely.Morphologically, S. coronus is shown to typically consist of three distinct parts: a bundle of thickly lined, often crossing tubes that have been constructed after each other, a feeding funnel connected to one end of the burrow system, and a fecal mound connected to the other end (Nara, 2006). Löwemark & Hong (2006) introduced a new ichnospecies, S. formosus, based on the differences in morphology to the original description of S. coronus that outlined a congruent bundle as the typical form. However, subsequent comparison of S. formosus with Nara's (2006) descriptions of S. coronus showed that the former can be accommodated in the latter. S. formosus therefore should be considered as a junior synonym of S. coronus and be abandoned.