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How many different types of fossils are there?

There are 4 different types of fossils in the twelve images.

1. Fossils 1, 2, and 12 are slices through one type of fossil.

2. Fossils 3 and 7 are slices through a second type of fossil.

3. Fossil 8 is a slice through a third type of fossil.

4. Fossils 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, and 11 are all slices through a fourth type of fossil.

If you guessed more than four, don't be disappointed; it is sometimes difficult to imagine what an object looks like just from slices through the object. Imagine looking at slices through a door knob. Could you guess the shape of the door knob from the slices? Sometimes, it's not that easy. Now that you have been told that there are four basic types of fossils, see if you can guess the original shape of the fossils by looking at some more pictures.

Fossil 1. Different slices through a thin-walled, spiral-shaped fossil .

Fossil 2. Different slices through a brown, oval to elongate fossil .

Fossil 3. Different slices through a nut-shaped fossil .

Fossil 4. C-, O-, U-, and V--shaped slices through the same type of fossil.

 

Continue with fossil 1

 

If you want to skip ahead and learn what type of animals made these fossils go to the fact sheet.

http://www.uky.edu/KGS/education/YoungFossils-11.pdf

 

Back to the beginning of the extension activity.