Mortichnia

A mortichnia is the "death march", or last walk, of a living creature.[1] These are sometimes preserved as fossil footprints.

Notable examples

In 2002 the mortichnia of a horseshoe crab was found in lithographic limestone in Bavaria, Germany.[1] The trail measured 9.7m and was left about 150 million years ago when the crab died in an anoxic lagoon.[1] The footprints left enough evidence for researchers to determine that the crab probably fell into the lagoon upside-down, righted itself, and started walking before succumbing to the anoxic conditions of the water before dying.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Fossil records 'crab' death march". BBC. Retrieved September 7, 2012.
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