trace fossil

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noun

a fossilized track, trail, burrow, boring, or other structure in sedimentary rock that records the presence or behavior of the organism that made it.

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British Dictionary definitions for trace fossil

trace fossil

noun

the fossilized remains of a track, trail, footprint, burrow, etc, of an organism

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

trace fossil in Science

trace fossil

A fossil consisting of an imprint of or a mark left by an organism, as opposed to physical remains. Trace fossils are produced in soft sediments and include surface tracks, molded impressions left by organisms or tissues that later decayed, and subsurface burrows or tunnelings.