Rhizoliths

DESCRIPTION: Filamentous to tubular structures as casts or molds ranging in diameter from < 1 mm to >10 cm; can taper downward or laterally but often exhibit the same diameter. Complex network of traces that regularly branch, and interweave with one another. Strongly to weakly dendritic.

BEHAVIOR(S): Traces reflect patterns produced by ground anchored plants and trees with roots or rooting structures and preserve the behavior of the plant with respect to the media conditions: anchoring, water collection, nutrient uptake. Roots live and die, move upward and downward depending on the soil moisture and water table levels (Hasiotis, 2002).

ENVIRONMENTAL SETTINGS: Mostly terrestrial, but also aquatic freshwater and marine. Found in a wide variety of environments from weakly- to well-developed paleosols formed on proximal to distal alluvial and marginal-lacustrine to shallow lacustrine environments to eolian.

POSSIBLE TRACEMAKERS: Simple to advance plants: ground cover, shrubs, trees.

GEOLOGIC RANGE:
Terrestrial: Ordovician-recent.
Aquatic: Cretaceous-recent

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES: (Loope, 1988)(Kraus and Hasiotis, 2006)