fossils quiz Flashcards
Abiotic/Physical Factors
Non-living factors such as erosion, wind and sun exposure.
Benthic
Living at the bottom of the ocean or on the ocean floor
Biological/Biotic Factors
Living factors such as decomposers, scavengers and predators.
Coprolite
Fossilized feces.
Cast
Casts are formed when sediment leaks into a mold and hardens to form a copy of the original.
Body fossil
Body parts of organisms that become fossils, such as bones, teeth, skin, leaves, tree trunks.
Compression
Fossils formed when an organism is flattened (compressed), leaving a dark stain in the rock.
Decomposer
An organism that breaks down the tissue and/or structures of dead organisms.
Erosion
Weathering or wearing away of rock and earth (and any fossils they contain) caused by wind, sun, and/or water.
Fossil
The natural remains or traces of past life. Something is considered to be a fossil if it is at least 10,000 years old.
Groundwater
Water found underground us a result of rainfall, ice and snow melt, submerged rivers, lakes, and springs
Fossil record
ALL of the fossils that have existed throughout life’s history, whether they have been found or not.
Geologic maps
Geological maps help paleontologists find the right rocks for their question.
Ichnology
The study of trace fossils.
Igneous rock
Type of rock produced when molten magma (lava) cools and solidifies.
Impression
Fossilized prints or marks made by a living thing. Leaf prints, skin prints and footprints and good example.
Inorganic
Not containing carbon. Not from living things. Ex., mineral.
Intertidal
The coastal zone between the low and high tide mark where the waves impact the land
Macroscopic
Objects or organisms that are large enough to be seen with the naked eye
Metamorphic rock
Rocks produced when any type of rock is changed by heat, pressure, and chemical activity in the Earth.
Microscopic
Objects or organisms that are too small to be seen with the naked eye.
Mineralization
The process whereby living material is replaced with minerals.
Mold
The impression of an organism left behind in the rock.
Organic
Containing carbon. Also refers to characteristic features of living things.
Paleontology
The study of life in the past.
Paleontologists
People who study fossils and other types of evidence to learn about life in the past.
Plate tectonics
The concept that explains the movement of the Earth’s crustal plates, sea floor spreading, and a number of other geologic processes of the Earth’s surface
Permineralized
Fossilization process that occurs when minerals, carried by groundwater, enter and harden in the posters of an organism’s structures.
Replacement
Fossilization process that occurs when an organism is completely decomposed and replaced by minerals.
Rock Cycle
The process through which one type of rock (igneous, sedimentary, or metaphoric) is converted into another.
Scavenger
An organism that feeds on dead and dying organisms.
Sedimentary Rock
rock that is formed when layers of small particles (sediment) are compressed and cemented together.
Trace fossil
Evidence left by organisms that, such as burrows, imprints, coprolites, or footprints.
Uplift
The process that causes part of the earth’s crust to rise above surrounding areas. This can cause layers of rock to become exposed at the surface.
Footprint fossil (trace fossils)
Footprints of animals
Animal Trail (trace fossils)
trails left by animals, ANY TRAILS
Nest with egg (trace fossil)
just a nest with an egg
Coprolite
fossilized poop
mineralization
happens when minerals carried in water build up in the spaces of an organism and eventually become rock.
frozen fossils
A whole organism can also be preserved if it is frozen very quickly. Some frozen mammoths have been found so well preserved, that their last meal was still undigested in their stomachs
Why is it difficult for an organism living in the rainforest to become a fossil?
The large amount of rain throughout the year causes rapid decay of dead organisms. Also, many scavengers and decomposers work quickly to break down the tissues and structures of rain forest life.
What are two reasons why many organisms never become part of the fossil record?
Decomposers eat the dead organisms instead of turning into fossils.
The pressure and crushing ruins the fossil
What are two ways that geologic processes can destroy a fossil?
The moving of fossils
Weathering and erosion
Why isn’t igneous rock a good place to look for fossils?
the extreme heat involved in its formation, from molten magma or lava, would destroy any organic material that could potentially become a fossil
