Fossils
What are fossils?
Fossils are the remains or traces of ancient living things found in rock.
What is a rock layer?
A rock layer is a layer of sedimentary rock that has formed over time.
What is an ancient environment?
Many accurate answers
What does a paleontologist study?
Fossils and ancient life.
Name one of the famous paleontologists we studied.
OC Marsh, Edward Cope, Mary Anning, Jack Horner, Jingmai O'Connor
What can fossils tell us about the ancient world?
What kind of environment it had, what creatures were there, etc.
What can rock layers tell us about Earth's history?
They can provide information about the environments that existed when the layers were formed.
Name one type of environment that produces a lot of fossils.
Swamps, deserts, tar pits, amber forests, aquatic environments.
Why do paleontologists use small shovels instead of excavators when digging for fossils?
To avoid breaking or damaging the fossils.
True or False: All dead plants and animals become fossils. Explain
False (award points if explanation is accurate)
How can we tell the age of a fossil?
Look at the age of the rock around it.
How do you tell which of two rock layers is older?
The deeper one is older.
How do fossils help us understand ancient climates?
Fossils can show what types of plants and animals lived in certain climates.
What do paleontologists do with fossils after they dig them up?
They clean, label, and study them to learn what they are and how old they are.
Why do fossils form more easily in water than on land?
What are the two types of fossils?
Body fossils and Trace fossils
What type of paleontologist uses rock layers and fossils to reconstruct ancient environments? (Think back to our profiles)
Paleoecologist
If you find fossils of animals with thick fur, what kind of ancient climate might they have lived in?
A cold climate.
Lab and Field
Name 3 other paleontologist tools.
Picks, hammers (especially geologist's hammers), brushes, goggles, jackhammer, toilet paper, plaster, shovels, etc.
Describe one way a fossil forms.
Multiple answers
Name 3 common rock layer types.
Limestone, shale, conglomerate, sandstone, mudstone, schist, bedrock
If you find fossils of animals with thick fur, what kind of ancient climate might they have lived in?
A cold climate.
Paleobotanist, paleoecologist, micropaleontologist, vertebrate paleontologist, invertebrate paleontologist
If fossils of an animal are found in older rock layers, but not in newer ones, what might that mean?
The animal went extinct.