Possible new evidence for the origin of metazoans prior to 1 Ga: Sediment-filled tubes from the Mesoproterozoic Allamoore Formation, Trans-Pecos Texas

Abstract

Possible new evidence for the origin of metazoans prior to 1 Ga comes from sediment-filled tubes preserved on a bedding-plane parting in a chert in the Allamoore Formation (Mesoproterozoic) in a talc quarry in the Millican Hills, near Van Horn, Trans-Pecos Texas. Available data for the Van Horn region indicate that the age of the Allamoore Formation is ∼1250 Ma. The sediment-filled tubes are most likely the feeding traces of animals grazing on algal mats in shallow subtidal or intertidal environments.