The invertebrate trace fossils from the Keuper (Upper Triassic) of the southern part of the Germanic Basin are revised. The Keuper sediments of the Germanic Basin are predominantly composed of rocks representing various nonmarine environments dominated by red-bed facies. The Würzburg Formation, the Stuttgart Formation, and the Hassberge Formation, all representing deposits of extended river systems, contain the richest ichnofauna. Trace fossil abundance is generally low and their occurrence is scattered. The studied material can be assigned to 28 ichnogenera, 38 ichnospecies, and 6 vernacular forms. Among the described trace fossils are one new ichnogenus and three new ichnospecies. Apart from the revision of the invertebrate trace fossils from the Keuper numerous related ichnotaxa from various localities and ages have been studied and revised. In the course of these studies several ichnotaxa are synonymised, lowered in rank, and new ichnogenera, subichnogenera, and ichnospecies are suggested. In addition, general guidelines for naming, and methodologies for studying invertebrate trace fossils are presented. The palaeoecology of three ichnocoenoses, one from the Würzburg Formation and two from the Hassberge Formation in Lower Franconia are briefly discussed. / Die Invertebratenspuren aus dem Keuper (Obere Trias) des südlichen Germanischen Beckens werden revidiert. Die Sedimente des Germanischen Keupers bestehen zum überwiegenden Teil aus verschiedenen nichtmarinen Rotsedimenten. Die Würzburg Formation, die Stuttgart Formation und the Hassberge Formation werden als Ablagerungen ausgedehnter Flusssysteme interpretiert und enthalten die reichhaltigsten Spurenfaunen. Die Häufigkeit von Spurenfossilien ist generell niedrig und ihre Verbreitung ist punktuell. Das untersuchte Material kann 28 Ichnogattungen und 38 Ichnoarten zugewiesen werden. Sechs Spurenfossiltypen konnten taxonomisch nicht zugewiesen werden. Unter den beschriebenen Formen sind eine neue Ichnogattung und drei neue Ichospezies. Neben der Revision der Keuperspuren wurden zahlreiche verwandte Spurentaxa verschiedener räumlicher und zeitlicher Herkunft detailiert revidiert. Im Zuge dieser Revision wurden einige Taxa synonymisiert oder in ihrem taxonomischen Rang erniedrigt sowie neue Ichnotaxa vorgeschlagen. Darüber hinaus werden Leitlinien zur Nomenklatur von Spurenfossilien sowie generelle Verfahrensweisen zum Studium von Invertebratenspurenfossilien vorgestellt. Die Palökolgie dreier Ichnozönosen aus Unterfranken, eine aus der Würzburg Formation und zwei aus der Hassberge Formation werden kurz diskutiert.

The Hassberge escarpment landscape developed from a widely extended original etchplain surface which represents the Middle to Upper Miocene final stage of undifferentiated etchplain lowering within the study area. The decisive processes of Upper Miocene and Pliocene landform differentiation were continuing planationsurface lowering increasingly governed by the structural differentiation of the bedrock substrate and local expansion of planation surfaces. This formation led to valley cutting since the Pliocene/Pleistocene transition period in the course of progressive reduction of the areas still subject to planation. The extent of structural adaptation and the interpretation of correlative sediments confirm a differentiated course of Late Tertiary climatic change, which, within the overall trend towards lower temperatures since the Lower to Middle Miocene, expressed itself in increasingly dry conditions during the Late Upper Miocene and Pliocene (BOLDT 1997). Taking the Lower Franconian scarplands (Main River region of southern Germany) as an example, the compatibility of the formation of stepped planation surfaces with the structural forcing of landform development is explained and confirmed in a world-wide comparison for regions of sedimentary rocks of varying resistance. The differentiated morphological context based on climate and geology is pointed out (BOLDT 1998).