Looking at Fossils

1 Key Concept Fossils provide evidence of how life and

environmental conditions have changed.

What You Will Learn A paleontologist named Luis Chiappe found a dinosaur
• Evidence of past life is preserved
as fossils in sedimentary rock and
nesting ground in Argentina. How did he know the area had
in other materials. been a dinosaur nest? He studied fossil eggs found there.

• The study of fossils reveals informa-

tion about how Earth’s environments Fossilized Organisms
and organisms have changed.
The trace or remains of an organism that lived long ago is
• Index fossils can be used to date
rock layers.
called a fossil. Fossils can form in several ways. The ways in
which fossils form are outlined below.
Why It Matters
Understanding fossils will help you Fossils in Rocks
understand how scientists piece
together Earth’s history. When an organism dies, either it begins to decay or it
is eaten by other organisms. Sometimes, however, organisms
Vocabulary
are quickly buried by sediment when they die. The sediment
• fossil
• trace fossil slows down decay and preserves the organisms. Hard parts,
• index fossil such as shells, teeth, and bones, are more resistant to decay
than soft parts are. So, the hard parts of organisms are more
often preserved than soft parts are. The fossils are preserved
Graphic Organizer In your Science when sediment hardens to form sedimentary rock.
Journal, make a Spider Map that
shows the different ways that fossils How is evidence of past life preserved in
can form. sedimentary rock? 7.4.c, 7.4.e

Fossils in Amber
Imagine that an insect is caught in soft, sticky tree sap. Sup-
pose that the insect is covered by more sap. If the sap hardens
quickly enough, it preserves the insect inside. Hardened tree
sap is called amber. Some of the best insect fossils are found
in amber, as shown in Figure 1. Frogs and lizards have also
been found in amber.

Figure 1 These insects

are preserved in amber.
They are more than
38 million years old.
7.3.c Students know how independent lines of
evidence from geology, fossils, and comparative
anatomy provide the bases for the theory of
evolution.
7.4.c Students know that the rock cycle includes the
formation of new sediment and rocks and that rocks
are often found in layers, with the oldest generally
on the bottom.
7.4.e Students know fossils provide evidence
of how life and environmental conditions have
changed.

264 Chapter 9 The History of Life on Earth

 Figure 2 Scientist Vladimir
Eisner studies the upper
molars of a 20,000-year-old
woolly mammoth found in
Siberia, Russia. The almost
perfectly preserved male
mammoth was excavated
from a block of ice in
October 1999.

Frozen Fossils
In October 1999, scientists removed a 20,000-year-old
woolly mammoth from the frozen ground of the Siberian
tundra. Some of the remains of this mammoth are shown in
Figure 2. Woolly mammoths, which are relatives of modern
elephants, became extinct about 10,000 years ago. Cold tem-
peratures slow down decay. So, many frozen fossils are preserved
from the last ice age. By studying the fossils, scientists hope
to learn more about the mammoth and its environment.

Fossils in Asphalt
There are places where asphalt wells up at Earth’s surface in fossil (FAHS uhl) the trace or
thick, sticky pools. The asphalt deposits known as the La Brea remains of an organism that lived
long ago, most commonly preserved
Tar Pits in Los Angeles, California, for example, are at least in sedimentary rock
38,000 years old. These pools of thick, sticky asphalt have
trapped and preserved many kinds of organisms for the past
38,000 years. From these fossils, scientists have learned about
the past environment of southern California.

Petrification
Organisms buried in sediment are sometimes preserved by
petrification. Petrification is the filling or replacement of an
organism’s tissues with minerals that have different chemical
compositions than the original tissues did. In one form of pet-
rification, the space in an organism’s hard tissue—for example,
bone—is filled with a mineral. In another form of petrification,
the organism’s tissues are completely replaced by minerals.
Petrified wood has undergone this type of replacement.
What is petrification? 7.3.c

Section 1 Looking at Fossils 265

 Other Types of Fossils
Besides their hard parts—and in rare cases their soft parts—
do organisms leave behind any other clues? What other evi-
dence of past life do paleontologists look for? Many fossils are
not body parts at all!

Trace Fossils
Any fossilized evidence of animal activity is called a
trace fossil. Tracks, such as the ones shown in Figure 3, are an
example of a trace fossil. These fossils form when animal foot-
prints fill with sediment and are preserved in rock. Tracks reveal
a lot about the animal that made them, including how big it
was and how fast it was moving. Scientists have found parallel
paths of tracks showing that a group of dinosaurs moved in
the same direction. These discoveries have led paleontologists
to hypothesize that some dinosaurs moved in herds.
Burrows are another kind of trace fossil. Burrows are shelters
Figure 3 These dinosaur tracks made by animals, such as clams, that bury themselves in sedi-
are located in Arizona. They show ment. Like tracks, burrows are preserved when they are filled
that the dinosaur was running with sediment and are buried quickly. A coprolite (KAHP roh
when it made these tracks. LIET), a third kind of trace fossil, is preserved animal dung.

Name three kinds of trace fossils. 7.4.e

Molds and Casts

Molds and casts are two more kinds of fossils. The impres-
trace fossil (TRAYS FAHS uhl) a fos- sion left in sediment or in rock where a plant or animal was
silized structure, such as a footprint buried is called a mold. Figure 4 shows two types of molds
or a coprolite, that formed in sedi-
from the same organism—an internal mold and an external
mentary rock by animal activity on or
within soft sediment mold. A cast is an object that forms when sediment fills a
mold and becomes rock. Like a mold, a cast can show what
the inside or the outside of an organism looked like.

Figure 4 The fossil on the

left is the internal mold of an
ammonite. It formed when
sediment filled the ammonite’s
shell. The shell later dissolved
away. On the right is the
external mold of the ammonite.
It shows the external features
of the shell.

266 Chapter 9 The History of Life on Earth

Using Fossils to Interpret the Past
All of the fossils that have been discovered on Earth are
part of the fossil record. The fossil record is the history of life
in the geologic past as indicated by the traces or remains of
living things. Read on to find out more about the fossil record,
including what scientists can learn from it.

The Information in the Fossil Record

The fossil record offers only a partial history of life on
Earth. Some parts of this history are more complete than others.
For example, scientists know more about organisms that had
hard body parts than about organisms that had only soft body
parts. Scientists also know more about organisms that lived
in environments that favored fossilization. The fossil record
is incomplete because most organisms never became fossils.
And many fossils have not been discovered yet.
Figure 5 This scientist has
A History of Environmental Changes found fossils of marine life at
the top of mountains in the Yoho
Would you expect to find marine fossils on the mountain National Park in Canada. The
shown in Figure 5? The presence of marine fossils means that marine fossils are evidence that
the rocks in these mountains formed in a very different envi- these rocks were pushed up from
ronment. They formed at the bottom of an ocean. below sea level.
Fossils can also contain evidence of climate change. For
example, scientists have found fossil evidence of forests and
freshwater organisms in Antarctica. The climate must have been
warmer in the past for forests to grow and for fresh water to
remain unfrozen. So, fossils are evidence of climate change in
Antarctica. By studying life in the fossil record, scientists can
tell what climates were like in the past.

Quick Lab
Connecting Fossils to Climates
7.4.e
1. Imagine that you go on an expedition
to a desert near your home and find the
two fossils shown here. Write a descrip-
tion of each fossil.
2. Formulate a hypothesis about the type
of organism each fossil represents.
3. Formulate a hypothesis about the envi-
ronment in which these organisms lived.
4. Is the environment you described in
step 3 different from the desert
environment in which the fossils were
found? If so, how would you explain
this difference?

15 min

Section 1 Looking at Fossils 267

 A History of Changing Organisms
To determine how life on Earth has changed, scientists
look for similarities between different fossils. Scientists also
look for similarities between fossils and living organisms. By
Fossil Hunt studying these relationships, scientists can interpret how life
Go on a fossil hunt with a has changed over time. However, only a small fraction of the
parent or guardian. Find out
organisms that have existed in Earth’s history have been fossil-
what kinds of rocks in your
local area may contain fos- ized. As a result, the fossil record is incomplete. So, it does not
sils. Take pictures or draw provide paleontologists with a continuous record of changes
sketches of your trip and of in life on Earth.
any fossils that you find. Keep
your notes and drawings in
your Science Journal. Dating the Fossil Record
To understand the history of life on Earth, paleontologists
put fossils in order based on age. In some cases, scientists can
use absolute dating methods, such as radiometric dating, to
determine the age of fossils. More commonly, they use rela-
tive dating methods, especially superposition, to establish the
relative ages of fossils. Fossils found in older layers of rock are
from more ancient life-forms. Fossils found in younger rock
layers are from organisms that lived more recently.
index fossil (IN DEKS FAHS uhl) a Would you expect to find fossils of an organism
fossil that is used to establish the that lived recently in very old rock layers or in younger rock
age of a rock layer because the fossil layers? Why? 7.3.c
is distinct, abundant, and widespread
and the species that formed that fos-
sil existed for only a short span of Using Fossils to Date Rocks
geologic time Scientists have found that some types of fossils appear all
over the world, but only in certain rock layers. Scientists date
the rock layers above and below these fossils. Then, scientists
can determine the time span in which the organisms that
formed the fossils lived. These types of fossils are called index
fossils. Index fossils are fossils of organisms that lived during
a relatively short, well-defined geologic time span. To be con-
sidered an index fossil, a fossil must be found in rock layers
throughout the world. It must also be easy to identify, and
many fossils of that organism must exist. Scientists use index
fossils to date rock layers in which the fossils are found.

Trilobites as Index Fossils

Fossils in a group of trilobites (TRIE loh BIETS) called Phacops
are an example of an index fossil. Trilobites are extinct. Their
closest living relatives are horseshoe crabs, spiders, and scor-
pions. Through the dating of rock, paleontologists have deter-
Figure 6 Paleontologists know mined that Phacops lived approximately 400 million years
that any rock layer that contains ago. So, when scientists find Phacops in rock layers anywhere
a fossil of the trilobite Phacops is on Earth, they know that the rock layers are approximately
about 400 million years old. 400 million years old. A Phacops fossil is shown in Figure 6.

268 Chapter 9 The History of Life on Earth

 Ammonites as Index Fossils
Ammonites (AM uh NIETS), another index
fossil, were marine mollusks similar to a
modern squid. Ammonites were common in
ancient oceans and lived in coiled shells. A
genus of ammonites called Tropites, shown
in Figure 7, is a common index fossil. Tropites
lived between 230 million and 208 million
years ago. So, it is an index fossil for that
period of time. If scientists find Tropites in a
rock layer, they know the rock layer formed Figure 7 Tropites is a kind of coiled ammonite.
Tropites existed for only about 20 million years,
between 230 and 208 million years ago.
which makes it a good index fossil.

7 Applying Concepts What could

Review 1 Use fossil, trace fossil, and index
you conclude if you found a
fossil of a tropical plant in a rock
fossil in separate sentences. that is in a polar climate?
7.3.c, 7.4.c,
7.4.e

2 Listing Describe five ways 8 Solving Problems If a scien-

Summary fossils can form. tist finds the remains of a plant
between a rock layer that
• Fossils are the traces or
remains of an organism
3 Applying Explain how an index
fossil can be used to date rock. contains 400 million–year-old
that lived long ago. Phacops fossils and a rock layer
4 Demonstrating How can fossils that contains 230 million–year-
• Fossils can be preserved
in sedimentary rock, amber,
be used to provide evidence of old Tropites fossils, how old
how life and environmental con- could the plant fossil be?
asphalt, or ice and by ditions on Earth have changed?
petrification.
5 Concluding Explain why the
• Trace fossils are any naturally
preserved evidence of animal
fossil record contains an incom-
plete record of the history of life 9 Applying Concepts Imagine
activity. Tracks, burrows, and on Earth. that you have discovered a
coprolites are examples of dinosaur fossil in Antarctica. What
trace fossils. types of information would you
• Scientists study fossils to
determine how environments
look for in order to determine the
6 Making Inferences You find environment in which the dino-
and organisms have changed a fossil of clam A in rock layer saur lived?
over time. A and a fossil of clam B in rock
• An index fossil is a fossil
that can be used to establish
layer B. If rock layer B is older
than rock layer A, what can you Internet Resources
the age of rock layers. infer about the relative ages of For a variety of links related to this
clams A and B? chapter, go to www.scilinks.org
Topic: Looking at Fossils
SciLinks code: HY70886

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