Fossils

fossils are

• The only way that we’ve been able to learn about dinosaurs, and still do, is by studying fossils. They are the relics of ancient animals and plants, or the traces or imprints of living things from many, many years ago. Fossils also might show traces of their activities. Fossils have been found on every single continent of Earth.

How did the name fossils come from

• The word fossil comes from the Latin word ‘fossilis which means, ‘dug up’. That’s certainly correct as most fossils are literally dug up. They are excavated, or dug up from sedimentary rock layers. But what is sedimentary rock? It is a type of rock that has been formed from sediment, like sand, mud and small pieces of rock.

fossil fact

• Over long, long periods, these small pieces of debris are squeezed and they get buried under more and more layers of sediment that pile up high on top of it. Eventually, they are squeezed into sedimentary rock.

how fossils formed

• Some animals were quickly buried after their death, for example if they sank in the mud or were buried in a sandstorm. Some parts of the animals didn’t rot, normally bones and teeth, and they were covered in newly formed sediment. If there were no scavengers, or any quick burials or too much weathering, then parts of those objects turned into fossils over time.

last fact

• After a long time the animals bodies changed due to some chemicals. As bones slowly started rotting, water that had minerals in it seeped into the bone and replaced the chemicals turning the bone into rock-like minerals.

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