Rhizohaloes

DESCRIPTION: Elongate mottles in simple, eongagte to branching morphology gray, red, yellow, or white in color. These mottles can be surrounded or rimmed by other mottles.

BEHAVIOR(S): Domichnia, polychresichnia (holdfast or anchor, obtain nutrients and water, form symbiotic relationships with mycorrhizal fungi).

ENVIRONMENTAL SETTINGS: Continental, terrestrial, found in imperfectly to poorly drained paleosols in various stages of development.

POSSIBLE TRACEMAKERS: Roots of plants

GEOLOGIC RANGE: Devonian to recent

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES: Kraus and Hasiotis 2006, Woody et al. 2014

REMARKS: Gray zones are depleted of iron (Fe) whereas the color of the rims may indicate hematite accumulation. These features are typical of surface-water gley processes that caused Fe and manganese (Mn) to move from the root channel outward to the soil matrix.