Fossils

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Fossils
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Fossils

• Fossils are the evidence or remains of
  prehistoric life plants or animals.
• We use fossils to work out the relative ages of
  rock layers, and to date rocks of similar ages
  that are found in different locations.

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Palaeontology

• The study of fossils is called paleontology.
• Something is a fossil if it is older than 10 000
  years.
• Anything younger than 10 000 years is called an
  archeological remain.

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Fossil or Remains?
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What Fossils Tell Us

• By examining the remains of plants and animals
  that existed long ago, and comparing them to more
  recent fossils, we can understand how they
  evolved, or why they became extinct.
• We can also link evolution or extinction to
  environmental conditions.

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Types of Fossils

• Bones and shells are called body fossils.

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Trace Fossils

• Footprints, tracts, and burrows are called trace
  fossils.

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• The three main sources of information about
  fossils are
• Their form or shape
• Their nearest living relative
• The type of sediment they were buried in