D.K. Publishing - My Book of Fossils: A fact-filled guide to prehistoric life

Author: Dr Dean Lomax

W hat are fossils? T yp es of fo ssil M aking a fossil F ossil record F ossil sites P aleontology tools C ollecting fossils S tromatolite C ooksonia Z amites P ecopteris L epidodendron P orana W oodocrinus R hizopoterion T hecosmilia P ygurus D idymograptus T ibia H allucigenia T ullimonstrum T rilobites P terygotus A rchimedes A viculopecten Senior editor Roohi Sehgal Project editors Olivia Stanford, Radhika Haswani Assistant editor Niharika Prabhaka r Senior art editors Ann Cannings, Nidhi Mehra Project art editor Kanika Kalr a Art editor Mohd Zishan Assistant art editor Aishwariya Chattoraj Publishing coordinator Issy Wa lsh Jacket designer Rashika Kachro o DTP designers Sachin Gupta, Syed Md Farhan, Vikra m Singh Project picture researcher Sakshi Saluja Production editor Dragana Puvacic Senior production controller Isabell Schart Managing editors Jonathan Melmoth, Monica Saigal Managing art editors Diane Pe yton Jones, Romi Chakrab orty Delhi team heads Glenda Fernandes, Malavika T a lukder Deputy art director Mabel Chan Publishing director Sarah Larter First published in Great Britain in 2022 by Dorling Kindersley Limited DK, One Embassy Gardens, 8 Viaduct Gardens, London, SW11 7BW The authorised representative in the EEA is Dorling Kindersley V erlag GmbH. Arnulfstr . 124, 80636 Munich, Germany Copyright 2022 Dorling Kindersley Limited A Pen guin Random House Company 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 001326505Jan/2022 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be repr oduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electr onic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the copyright owner . A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library . ISBN: 978-0-2415-3336-9 Printed and bound in China For the curious www.dk.com This book was made with F or est Stewardship Co uncil cert ifi ed paper one small step in DKs commitment to a sustainable future. Fo r more informat ion go to www. dk.com/our-gr een-pledge

M eganeura C yr to spirifer C ylindrot euthis A mmonites G emstone fossils F irst fossil fi nders P ycnodus O todus megalodon C occosteus D repanaspis T iktaalik E ryops E chmatemys E daphosaurus S tenopterygius E lasmosaurus S caphognathus P latecarpus D inosaurs S tegosaurus E uoplocephalus O rnithopods P atagotitan K haan T r iceratops S tegoceras T yr annosaurus V el ociraptor A rchaeopteryx C onfuciusornis D inornis D orudon P rehistoric world M organucodon G omphotherium U rsus spelaeus C oelodonta S milodon M ammuthus M ylodon A ustralopithecus E xcavation R ecent discoveries F uture fossils A ll together G lossary I ndex A cknowledgements

Fossils are the remains or evidence o f ancient life that we can see today . Sc ientists who study fossils are called paleontologists. By examining fossils, we can discover the types of animals and plants that lived on Earth long ago. Even the most delicat e parts of an ancien t animal can bec ome f os silized , su ch as these ti ny tail b ones .

Some rare animal fossi ls are found with their l ast mea l still i nside t heir stomach. In the righ t c onditions, f os sils may p res er v e skin, f ur , f e athers , and even i ntern al org ans. T h e scales of this fish are still v is ible . Usua lly , only small pieces of the original org anism are f o und as fos sils. How ever , so me specime ns can be complet ely pr ese rve d, su ch as this f os sil fish, called P ri scacara. Great fi nds Sometimes, amazing fossils are found that show us not just what an animal looked like, but how it behaved. Certain fossils reveal how prehistoric animals cared for their young, how they built homes, what they ate f or dinner , or even that they got sick. Thi s remarkab le f os sil capt ures a lar ger fis h eating a smaller f is h when they died. T h e even t has b een f r ozen in time since the P aleoge ne P eriod . Eggs and babies of the dino saur Maiasaura have b een f o und inside a nest in g ground. T he babies were care d fo r by their paren ts.

Trac e fossils Tra ce fossils record behaviours of ancient lif e. This can be in the form of tr acks and trails, burr ows and nests, and even fossilized poo, called coprolite. Not just rocks Not all fossils are formed inside r ocks. Sometimes organisms can become trapped in amber or frozen in ice. These methods of f ossilization of ten preserv e more delicate body parts, such as fur and skin. Fossils come in all shapes and sizes from tiny grains o f pollen to gigantic dinosaur bones. There are two main ty pes: body fo ssils, which pre serve the hard par ts of a life form, and tra ce fossils, which are evidence of its existence. Fo ssil f o otprin ts are so me of the most commonly f ound trace f o ssils . Amb er can pr ese rve both bo dy and trace f o ssils together . Fo ssiliz ed in sec t in amber Fo ssiliz ed in sec t in amber Th is baby mammoth was disco ve red when ice in Ru ssia melte d. C h i r o t h e r i u m f o o t p r i n t C h i r o t h e r i u m f o o t p r i n t M a m m o t h f o u n d i n i c e M a m m o t h f o u n d i n i c e

Moulds and casts If an animal or plant becomes buried, its body parts might break down, leaving b ehind a space (mould) i n the rock. This space may be filled with minerals to create a three-dimensional copy (cast) of the original lif e form. Body fossils Body fossils are the direct remains of organisms that were once living, suc h as animals and plants. Usually , only hard parts, including bones, teeth, shells, and bark, fossilize. T his T riceratop s skull is a perf e ct ex ample of a bod y f os sil. Bo th the bones and t eeth are pres erv ed. Shar k tee th are among the most common bod y f os sils fo und in the world . Mould f os sil Mould f os sil C ast f o ssil C ast f o ssil Megalodon Megalodon tooth tooth T r i c e r a t o p s s k u l l T r i c e r a t o p s s k u l l Organisms may leav e behind many tr ace fo ssils, but j ust one skeleton.