Asked by: Moise Estlick
science geology

What is a fossil easy definition?

25
Fossils are the remains or traces of plants andanimals that lived long ago. Most fossils are found in earththat once lay underwater. They usually formed from the hardparts—such as shells or bones—of livingthings.


Also asked, what are fossils in short answer?

Fossils are remains or impressions of organismsthat lived in the remote past. Fossils provide the evidencethat the present animal have originated from previously existingones through the process of continuous evolution.

Also Know, what is fossil in science definition? A fossil is the preserved remains or impressionsof a living organism such as a plant, animal, or insect. Somefossils are very old. Studying fossils helpsscientists to learn about the past history of life onEarth.

Likewise, what are fossils?

Fossils are the preserved remains, or traces ofremains, of ancient organisms. Fossils are not the remainsof the organism itself! They are rocks. A fossil canpreserve an entire organism or just part of one. Bones, shells,feathers, and leaves can all become fossils.

What are fossils called?

Fossils may also consist of the marks left behindby the organism while it was alive, such as animal tracks or feces(coprolites). These types of fossil are called tracefossils or ichnofossils, as opposed to body fossils.Some fossils are biochemical and are calledchemofossils or biosignatures.

Related Question Answers

Sohan Blacky

Professional

Who discovered fossils?

Based upon those drawings, modern scientists believe itwas probably from a dinosaur known as "Megalosaurus." Megalosaurusis believed to be the first dinosaur ever described scientifically.British fossil hunter William Buckland found somefossils in 1819, and he eventually described them and namedthem in 1824.

Garegin Nitschke

Professional

How are fossils formed?

The Formation of Fossils. Fossilsare formed in a number of different ways, but most areformed when a plant or animal dies in a watery environmentand is buried in mud and silt. Soft tissues quickly decomposeleaving the hard bones or shells behind. Over time sediment buildsover the top and hardens into rock.

Darrick Butenhoff

Professional

How do you describe a fossil?

fossil. The remains or imprint of an organismfrom a previous geologic time. A fossil can consist of thepreserved tissues of an organism, as when encased in amber, ice, orpitch, or more commonly of the hardened relic of such tissues, aswhen organic matter is replaced by dissolved minerals.

Sigerico Kalkhoff

Explainer

What are the characteristics of a fossil?

Index fossil, any animal or plant preserved inthe rock record of the Earth that is characteristic of aparticular span of geologic time or environment. A useful indexfossil must be distinctive or easily recognizable, abundant,and have a wide geographic distribution and a short range throughtime.

Ivanildo Planillo

Explainer

What is the importance of fossils?

Fossils are important because they allowpaleontologists and other scientists to study the physicalstructure of extinct organisms.

Hadj Burkard

Explainer

Is it easy to become a fossil?

Most animals become fossilized by being buried insediment. For them to be fossilized, they have to beburied and leave an imprint before they decompose. Animals withoutskeletons are seldom fossilized, because they decompose soquickly. Animals with hard skeletons are much easier tofossilize.

Georgetta Treviño

Pundit

What are the 5 different types of fossils?

Five types of fossils: (a) insect preserved inamber, (b) petrified wood (permineralization), (c) cast and mold ofa clam shell, (d) pyritized ammonite, and (e) compressionfossil of a fern.

Gligor Halper

Pundit

What are different types of fossils?

There are four main types of fossils, all formedin a different way, which are conducive to preservingdifferent types of organisms. These are mold fossils,cast fossils, trace fossils and true formfossils.

Nanette Ouadah

Pundit

Where can you find a fossil?

What's the Dirt on Fossils? Most fossilsare found in sedimentary rock. Sedimentary rock is formed by dirt(sand, silt, or clay) and debris that settles to the bottom of anocean or lake and compresses for such a long time that it becomeshard as a rock.

Magno Marhofer

Pundit

Can humans become fossils?

So, that's how fossils are made. Birds, forexample, are very, very rare in the fossil record, becauseavian bones are incredibly fragile, and are unlikely to remainintact long enough to become fossils. On the other hand, itturns out humans are actually fairly well-suited tobecoming fossils.

Angelino Sevil

Pundit

Is a fossil organic?

Fossils with some organic materialpreserved
Animal and plant remains can undergo a variety ofphysical and chemical changes during fossilisation. removal of allorganic material except carbon, which remains as a film inthe rock.

Avery Krawinkel

Teacher

Are fossils real bones?

The "dinosaur bones" that you see on display atthe Museum aren't really bones at all. Through the processof fossilization, ancient animal bones are turned intorock.

Jatri Beimdiek

Teacher

Are fossils bones?

Body fossils (such as teeth, bones,shells, wood, leaves, pollen, etc.) were once part of a livingthing. Taphonomy is the process by which parts of a living thingare buried and preserved as fossils.

Darlene Lindthaler

Teacher

How do fossils work?

Most organisms become fossils when they'rechanged through various other means. In another fossilizationprocess, called replacement, the minerals in groundwater replacethe minerals that make up the bodily remains after the watercompletely dissolves the original hard parts of theorganism.

Kesha Immery

Teacher

What is the oldest fossil found?

In July 2018, scientists reported that the earliest lifeon land may have been bacteria 3.22 billion years ago. In May 2017,evidence of microbial life on land may have been found in3.48 billion-year-old geyserite in the Pilbara Craton of WesternAustralia.

Yoselyn Dalby

Reviewer

Why are fossils so hard to find?

When an organism is buried quickly, there is less decayand the better the chance for it to be preserved. The hardparts of organisms, such as bones, shells, and teeth have a betterchance of becoming fossils than do softer parts. One reasonfor this is that scavengers generally do not eat theseparts.

Salamu Echepare

Reviewer

What is fossil in history?

Fossil, remnant, impression, or trace of ananimal or plant of a past geologic age that has been preserved inEarth's crust. The complex of data recorded in fossilsworldwide—known as the fossil record—is theprimary source of information about the history of life onEarth.

Classie Zha

Reviewer

What can we learn from fossils?

By studying the fossil record we can tell how long lifehas existed on Earth, and how different plants and animalsare related to each other. Often we can work out how and where theylived, and use this information to find out about ancientenvironments. Fossils can tell us a lot about thepast.

Karena Sunderhaus

Reviewer

What are carbonized fossils?

Carbonization. Carbonized fossil remains(also called carbonizations) may result when organisms are rapidlyburied, especially in low-oxygen conditions. Carbonizedremains are thin, approximately two-dimensional films of carbonpreserved on a flat surface of rock.

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10th March, 2020

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