How do Fossils Form?

How do fossils form? What is permineralization? What is unaltered preservation? These questions and more will be answered!! Enjoy!

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YouTube, its Cram. How do Fossils form? They're not just bones that end up underground waiting to be dug out. The word fossil itself comes from the Classical Latin word Fossilis, which means obtained by digging. But as we know some fossils can be obtained without digging. There are 4 types of fossils, mold, cast, trace and true form fossils. Mold fossils are impressions, without the bones themselves. Cast fossils are basically mold fossils but are filled in, typically with minerals. Trace fossils are traces of the existence of the creature, such as nests, burrows or tracks. True form fossils actually have parts of the animal, typically bones. There are many types of true form fossilization, but two main kinds are unaltered preservation and permineralization, which is what we will be focusing on today. Unaltered preservation is most common in insects and other small creatures. It is when they are trapped in a thick substance which hardens, preserving all parts of their body. This substance is typically amber, which is hardened tree sap. permineralization is when rock like minerals seep into the animal and replace its organic tissue and sometimes bone. This is why fossilized animals seem to have dense bones, it is because of the minerals that seeped in. One way this can happen is in a body of water. The animal will settle at the bottom, and the decomposition process will be greatly slowed by the surrounding water. Eventually sediment will cover the body, and more and more layers of rock will cover it on top. This pressure will cause permineralization. Eventually, due to geologic forces, the fossils may be closer to the surface or even above ground which is where we can discover them. Though now without technology and our knowledge of migration patterns and habitats we can accurately predict and find fossils underground, in the past we had to rely on chance to stumble upon something great. I hope you enjoyed this video as much as I appreciated you watching. Subscribe to stay up to date on all my latest science videos, and until next time, Cram out.

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[wilsonfamily]

You're a good teacher! WOW I'M WATCHING IN 2018!

[yeclxdc]

Thanks for explaining it quickly without any bullshit

[stojko]

There's no such thing as too many science videos.. I see potential here. I subscibed.
Keep'em comming.

[k.]

Thanks you helped me with my project. :)

[TheLousyGames]

i found a (well not me rather my neighbor) dragonfly fossil. It was just behind my house in florida (if the region makes any difference) and i think it was a mageneura.

[willyvanderwoug]

How long can a animal be preserved before it rots away not millions of years !

[schaferolsen]

things rot and get eaten when they are at the bottom of the ocean - they don't slowly get buried. this is false info.