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Methods of Fossilization

Fossils can form through several processes including petrification, carbonization, molds and casts, and trace fossils. Petrification occurs when minerals replace the internal structure of organisms, sometimes preserving details. Carbonization preserves delicate remains like leaves through compression. Molds and casts form impressions or mineral fillings of organisms. Trace fossils include tracks, burrows, and coprolites that show signs of ancient organisms. Overall, fossils require organisms to be rapidly buried and replaced or preserved before decay to be retained as evidence of past life.

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8K views

Methods of Fossilization

Fossils can form through several processes including petrification, carbonization, molds and casts, and trace fossils. Petrification occurs when minerals replace the internal structure of organisms, sometimes preserving details. Carbonization preserves delicate remains like leaves through compression. Molds and casts form impressions or mineral fillings of organisms. Trace fossils include tracks, burrows, and coprolites that show signs of ancient organisms. Overall, fossils require organisms to be rapidly buried and replaced or preserved before decay to be retained as evidence of past life.

Uploaded by

muralitharangis
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Methods of Fossilization

Fossils are preserved in the rock record in several ways;


1) Petrification
2) Carbonization
3) Mold and Cast
4) Preservation
Ice, Mummification, and Amber
5) Traces
Tracks, Burrows, and Coprolites.
Petrification
occurs when the small internal
cavities and pores of the original
structure are filled with
precipitated mineral matter.
occurs when cell walls and
solid material are removed and replaced by
mineral material carried by underground
water.
sometimes internal details and structures are retained.
Carbonization
occurs when fine sediment encloses delicate
matter such as leaves in a oxygen poor environment.
As time passes, pressure squeezes out the liquid and
gaseous components of the organism leaving behind
a thin residue of carbon.
Mold and Cast
often preserve a replica of a plant
or animal in sedimentary rocks.
The mold shows only the original shape
and surface markings of the organism; it
does not reveal the internal structure.
an organism is buried in sediment
and then dissolved by underground
water leaving a hollow depression or
an impression, called a mold.
When minerals or sediment fills the
hollow depression or impression it forms a cast.
Original remains can be preserved
in ice or in amber (tree sap).
Both ice and amber protects the
organism from decay (oxygen free environment) and
from pressures that would crush the organisms.
The entire animal has been preserved, even the
soft parts which usually decay and disappear.
Examples:
(1) Woolly Mammoths preserved in ice in Alaska and Siberia.
(2) Insects preserved in tree sap (amber). Cane in Jurassic Park.
Preservation
show traces left in the rock by
an animal, such as;
1) Tracks - animal footprints made in soft sediment
that latter formed solid sedimentary rock.
3) Coprolites - Fossil dung (feces) and stomach contents.
Trace Fossils
2) Burrows - animal trails made in soft sediment that
latter formed solid sedimentary rock.
Sample Problem
Molds and Casts:Organisms with hard parts get rapidly buried in
sediment. The sediment compresses and hardens, the organism
dissolves/decays, and an impression (mold) is left. For a cast, an
impression (mold) fills with sediment and hardens/compacts, forming a
solid representation of the organism. Only external features are fossilized.
Petrification: Hard parts of an organism, such as bone or trees,
get buried rapidly in sediment. Pores and cavities in the material
(organism) takes in water (fluid) which precipitates minerals to
produce a solid replica of the organism, preserving all details,
external and internal.
Fossils are commonly formed by the following methods:
-- formation of molds and casts
-- petrification by replacement
Describe these, including in your description, the conditions necessary
for fossilization to occur.

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