''Spirorhaphe'' (sometimes misspelt ''Spiroraphe'') is an

ichnogenus An ichnotaxon (plural ichnotaxa) is "a taxon based on the fossilized work of an organism", i.e. the non-human equivalent of an artifact. ''Ichnotaxa'' comes from the Greek ίχνος, ''ichnos'' meaning ''track'' and ταξις, ''taxis'' meaning ...

of spiraling

burrow An Eastern chipmunk at the entrance of its burrow A burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to construct a space suitable for habitation or temporary refuge, or as a byproduct of locomotion. Burrows provide a form of sh ...

s. It is associated with the ''

Nereites ''Nereites'' is a genus of trace fossil. Modern tracemakers of incipient ''Nereites'' include worm-like organisms,Seilacher, A., 2007. Trace Fossil Analysis. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg (226 pp.) horseshoe crabsMartin, A.J., Rindsberg, A.K., 20 ...

ichnofacies An ichnofacies is an assemblage of trace fossils that provides an indication of the conditions that their formative organisms inhabited. Concept Trace fossil assemblages are far from random; the range of fossils recorded in association is constra ...

, which is interpreted as an indicator of deep-sea, pelagic,

turbidity current A turbidity current is most typically an underwater current of usually rapidly moving, sediment-laden water moving down a slope; although current research (2018) indicates that water-saturated sediment may be the primary actor in the process. T ...

-dominated systems. It is one of the most common graphoglyptid traces found in modern ocean beds.

References

Trace fossils Paleozoic life of Ontario Paleozoic life of Manitoba Paleozoic life of Quebec {{paleo-stub