Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of ancient organisms. They are usually found in sedimentary rocks, which are formed when sediments containing remains are buried over time. Fossils form when an organism is buried rapidly in sediment before it can fully decay. The sediment hardens to rock and preserves a record of the organism. Index fossils are fossils used to date rock layers because they existed for a short, well-defined period of time. Nummulites are coin-shaped fossils that were commonly found in the Pyrenees mountains, indicating the presence of Tertiary-era sedimentary rocks formed during the Alpine orogeny.

1. Fossils
(ThisisanillustrationfromErnstHaeckel's''KunstformenderNatur''of1899,showinga
collectionofammonites.)
•http://biodeluna.wordpress.com

2. What is a FossilFossil?
Fossils
(from Latin fossus, literally "having been dug up")
are the preserved remains or traces of
animals, plants, and other organisms from the
remote past.

3. • Sedimentary rocksSedimentary rocks
• In what type of rockswhat type of rocks
do we usually find fossilsfossils?

4. • Why would you not expect to find
fossils in igneous rocks?
• Can you find fossils in metamorphic rocks?
blog.senhordesign.com

5. • Coprolites and icnites are fossils too.
A coprolite is fossilized
animal dung (feces)
Icnites (dinosaurs' footprints)
Enciso-LaRioja-

6. Index fossils
• Index fossilsIndex fossils (also known as guide fossils,
indicator fossils or zone fossils) are fossils used
to define and identify geologic periods (or
faunal stages).

8. Index fossil features
The ideal index fossilsideal index fossils are those that are:
• abundant,
• easy to identify,
• short-lived,
• widely distributed,
• and occur in many types of rocks.

9. Describe howDescribe how fossilsfossils are formed inare formed in
sedimentary rocks…sedimentary rocks…
Check this animated explanation
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/prehistoric_life/dinosaurs/making_fossils/makingfossils/index.shtml
http://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/visualizations/es2901/es2901page01.cfm?chapter_no=visualization

10. Describe how fossils are formed in
sedimentary rocks…
http://www.science-graphics.net

11. Describe how fossils are formed in
sedimentary rocks…
•

12. Do all animals fossilizze?Do all animals fossilizze?

13. Do all animals fossilizze?
Most animals did not fossilize;
they simply decayed and were lost from the fossil
record.
Paleontologists estimate that only a small percentage of
the dinosaur genera that ever lived have been or will be
found as fossils.

14. • What important facts can fossils tells us about
sedimentary rocks and the environment in which
they were formed?
• In what ways is the fossil record importance to
science?
blog.senhordesign.com

15. Trilobite

16. Trilobite
• (meaning "three lobes") Trilobites are a well-
known fossil group of extinct marine arthropods
that form the class Trilobita.
• When trilobites first appeared in the fossil record
they were already highly diverse and
geographically dispersed. Because trilobites had
wide diversity and an easily fossilized
exoskeleton an extensive fossil record was left,
with some 17,000 known species spanning
Paleozoic time.

18. Ammonite
• Ammonites are an
extinct group of marine
invertebrate animals in
the subclass
Ammonoidea of the class
Cephalopoda.

19. Ammonite
• Late Silurian - Cretaceous

20. Belemnites
• Belemnites were numerous during the
Jurassic and Cretaceous periods
Belemnites are the internal shells of an extinct
type of cephalopod mollusc related to modern
octopus and squid.

21. Nummulite
• A nummulite is a large lenticular fossil,
characterized by its numerous coils,
subdivided by septa into chambers. They are
the shells of the fossil and present-day marine
protozoan

22. The name "Nummulites" is a diminutive form of the Latin nummulus meaning "little
coin", a reference to their shape

23. Nummulite
• They are common in Tertiary marine rocks,
particularly around the Mediterranean.
http://geology.com/publications/lyell/ch16.shtml

24. Which one is older?
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=63524

25. Which one is older?
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=63524

26. Which one could we easily find in the
Pyrenees?
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=63524

27. Which one could we easily find in the
Pyrenees?
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=63524

28. Which one could we easily find in the
Pyrenees?
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=63524
Why?Why?

29. Which one could we easily find in the
Pyrenees?
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=63524
Why?
Tertiary –Tertiary –
Alpine orogeny –Alpine orogeny –
PyreneesPyrenees

30. • http://en.wikipedia.org/
• http://www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/earth/fossils/fossil-folklore/fossil_types/
• http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_are_three_characteristics_of_a_good_index_fossil
• http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/dinosaurs/dinofossils/Fossilhow.html
• http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/prehistoric_life/dinosaurs/making_fossils/makingfossils/index.shtml
• Icnite picture at Enciso La Rioja, from
• http://www.vallenajerilla.com/berceo/rioja-abierta/pangea/anteshistoria.htm