Field guide

2 Introduction

Fossil Field Guide

By Peter Sheldon

Using this Field Guide

The purpose of the guide is to help someone finding a
fossil to identify the group to which it belongs. The guide
will have achieved its key objective if you are able to say
that your find is, for example, a brachiopod, a trilobite or
a coral. This should get you started, and more detailed
identification can then be made with the help of books,
the internet, a visit to a museum, or discussion with
someone more experienced at fossil identification. Don’t
be disheartened if you can’t identify your fossil with
this guide – it covers only the most common groups,
and each group contains many more fossils than those
illustrated here. Bear in mind too, that even if a fossil is
represented in the guide, it may look very different in the
rock, where it may be seen in cross-section, viewed from
any angle, crushed or deformed, or just a fragment.

The illustrations for each

group show fossils that span
the group’s typical range of
appearance. Vertebrates and
plants, although highly diverse,
are relatively rare as fossils
compared with invertebrates,
and their subdivision into major
groups is beyond the scope of
this guide. Similarly, microfossils,
though very common, require a
Underside of a Jurassic sea urchin,
Paracidaris. The tooth-like plates in the
microscope to study, and are not
centre are part of its jaw apparatus for covered here.
scraping up food. 7 cm.
The names given in italics beside
each illustration are, in most
cases, the genus (plural genera). Most fossil (and modern) genera
contain several closely-related species, and species are usually
harder to identify correctly than the genus. Our own genus, Homo, has
only one species today – ourselves, Homo sapiens. Genus and species
names are always printed in italics, and the species name (e.g.
sapiens) always begins with a lower case letter.
 3 Introduction
The typical size of each fossil is given beside its illustration, or stated
in the caption, and, unless otherwise indicated, this represents the
longest measurement in any direction (excluding soft parts).
A geological period (e.g. Jurassic) is given for each genus. Many
genera range through more than one period, in which case the period
given is typical for the genus. Geological time since the start of the
Cambrian Period is divided into three eras – the Palaeozoic, Mesozoic
and Cenozoic – each containing a number of periods of unequal
duration. The age, in millions of years, of the start and finish of each
period can be seen from the stratigraphic column repeated throughout
the guide. These ages are continually refined in the light of new
information and improved dating techniques.

What is a fossil?
A fossil is simply any evidence of ancient life, naturally preserved
within the materials that make up the Earth. Usually, the evidence is
found within a sedimentary rock – originally loose sediment such as
mud, silt, and sand – but other possibilities for entombment include
natural tars and resins (amber), or even ice.
There is no strict dividing line in
terms of age between recent organic
remains and fossils. As a rough
guide, most palaeontologists (people
who study fossils) would probably
consider any evidence of life over
about 10 000 years old to be a
fossil. The question of definition is
not usually an issue, however, as
most fossils are millions of years
old. Fossils are only common in
sedimentary rocks younger than
the start of the Cambrian Period,
542 million years ago, when
The Jurassic ammonite Psiloceras.
5.5 cm.
organisms first acquired the ability
to produce hard parts.
The fossil record is dominated by invertebrate animals with durable
shells or skeletons that lived in shallow seas (e.g. ammonites,
trilobites and corals). The land tends to be a site of net erosion, so the
opportunity for long-term burial is less than in shallow seas on the
edges of continents, where most sediment accumulates. In general,
fast but gentle burial, particularly in oxygen-poor environments,
favours good preservation. Vertebrates tend to be less abundant in
living populations than invertebrates, and so are relatively rare as
fossils, whether they lived in the sea (e.g. ichthyosaurs) or on land
(e.g. dinosaurs). Plants, living mainly on land, tend to be scarce as
fossils, as are animals from freshwater rivers and
lakes. Insects too, despite their abundance and
diversity, are rarely fossilised.
 4 Introduction
Body fossils preserve something of the bodily remains of animals
or plants, such as shells, bones and leaves, or their impression in
the enclosing sediment. Parts of the body often become altered
in chemical composition and physical structure. Hard parts of
organisms, such as bones, teeth and shells often have tiny pores
(open spaces). When buried in sediment, these pores tend to be filled
with minerals, such as calcite and quartz, that crystallise out from
water seeping through the sediment, making the structure denser
than in life. The original hard parts of organisms, and more rarely
the soft parts, may be completely replaced by the growth of new
minerals.
Both the filling up of pores (permineralisation) and the replacement
of biological materials by minerals may occur in a single fossil.
Neither of these processes, which together are called petrifaction
– ‘turning into stone’ – has to occur for something to be called a
fossil; sometimes the fossil is still composed of the original, barely
altered shell or bone. The bodies of ancient plants are often preserved
as thin films of carbon, whereas, in life, plant tissues contain in
addition many other chemical elements.
The surface of a sedimentary rock surrounding or infilling a fossil
shell (or other body part) is called a mould. Usually, both internal and
external moulds are formed, recording impressions of the inside and
outside of the shell, respectively. If the shell becomes completely
dissolved away, a space is left between the internal mould and the
external mould. New minerals may fill this space, forming a crude
cast of the shell that lacks details of the shell’s original structure. In
general, casts are rarer than moulds.
Trace fossils preserve evidence of the
activity of animals, such as their tracks,
trails, burrows, borings or droppings.
They are often the only evidence we
have of extinct organisms whose bodies
lacked any hard parts (e.g. many types
of worm). Unlike body fossils, in which
the body may have been transported
after death a long way from where the
A pseudofossil. This plant-like original organism lived, most trace
pattern was formed by crystals of fossils are direct, in situ evidence of the
manganese oxide growing along a
crack in limestone. 3.5 cm.
environment at the time and place the
organism was living.
Sometimes one can be deceived into thinking an object is a fossil
when it is not. Pseudofossils are misleading structures, produced by
inorganic processes, that by chance look as if they are evidence of
ancient life.
Fossils are very useful for giving us information about ancient
environments and climates, for revealing the evolution
of life through time, and for matching up rocks of
similar age in different parts of the world. And were it
not for ancient life we would not have any fossil fuels
– coal, oil and natural gas.
 5 Introduction

Responsible fossil collecting

Fossils form a major scientific, educational and recreational resource,
and are part of any country’s heritage. Only a responsible approach
to fossil hunting will ensure this resource remains viable for future
generations to enjoy. It may be best just to take a photograph,
and leave a specimen for others to see, as the context in which
fossils occur can be the main scientific interest. Collect only a few
representative specimens and, unless you have time to make a
detailed scientific study of fossils in situ and publish your findings,
obtain them from loose, fallen or scree material where possible.
Encourage responsible collecting in others too. If you think you have
made an important find, seek specialist advice from a museum,
university, geological society or conservation agency.
Here are some key points to bear in mind. Safety is, of course,
paramount.
Always seek permission first if you intend to enter private land.
On the coast, beware of tides, cliff falls and mudflows, especially
during wet and stormy weather. Collect when the tide is going out.
The cliffs on more rapidly eroding coastlines, and recently blasted
quarry faces, are often exceedingly dangerous – never be tempted
to go too close. A hard hat may give protection from small pebbles,
but is useless against a more significant rockfall. Be careful, too,
not to dislodge rock onto others below.
Follow the Country Code, e.g. avoid disturbance of wildlife and do
not leave the collecting site in an untidy or dangerous condition for
those that follow. Be considerate to others.
Even if you take a mobile phone, reception may be poor, so tell
someone where you are going and what time you expect to return.
Many of the most important fossil sites in Britain are protected by
law as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) or designated as
Regionally Important Geological Sites (RIGS) by local RIGS groups.
Collecting fossils from these sites may be prohibited, except for bona
fide research purposes. In such cases special permission is required
from the relevant government conservation agency – Natural England,
Scottish Natural Heritage, the Countryside Council for Wales or (in
Northern Ireland) the Environment and Heritage Service.
Fossils can be found in most places where sedimentary rocks of
Cambrian age and younger are exposed. Clays, shales and limestones
tend to be more richly fossiliferous than sandstones, though the latter
may yield abundant trace fossils.
Although a geological hammer is often useful, much study of
fossils can be done without one. Use only a geological hammer
made of specially hardened steel, as an ordinary
DIY hammer is too brittle. Always protect your
eyes with safety spectacles, and never hammer
indiscriminately. Hammering is forbidden or even
illegal at some sites, so check the situation first.
 6 Introduction
A metal chisel can be used with a hammer
for prizing out pieces of rock and trimming
matrix from specimens. A spade and sieve
may be helpful in extracting fossils from
soft clays or uncemented sands and silts.
It is usually easier to remove the majority
of matrix around the fossil in the field,
rather than back at home, and there is less
weight to carry too.
A hand lens can enhance your
understanding of fossils and the rocks
Jurassic strata rich in fossils containing them. These can be bought
– but always keep your from stamp shops (philatelists) and some
distance from unstable cliffs hobby shops. A magnification of ×10 is
like this. recommended.
A notebook is essential, and annotated sketches, supplemented by
photographs, are often the best way to record your observations.
Geographic location is especially important. Photos and drawings can
be a more desirable alternative to collecting, but if you do collect,
you will need plastic bags, a non-smearing felt pen, and some
suitable wrapping material (e.g. kitchen roll) to protect more delicate
specimens. When home, be sure to label and organise your finds
before you forget information about them (a computer can be helpful
here). For one reason or another, most fossil collecting sites do not
last forever, and a well-organised collection of even common fossils
may later prove of much scientific value. Further tips about preparing
and curating specimens are beyond the scope of this guide.
Remember, if you think you have made a rare find, take your specimen,
or send an image of it, to an expert. New species, or exceptional
specimens of poorly known ones, can be found by complete beginners.
Sometimes a new species is named after the finder!
Finally, there are many benefits in joining one of the numerous
societies where you can meet others with a similar interest in fossils
and rocks, discuss your finds, take part in organised field trips, and
learn a great deal more.

References
Here is just a small selection from the huge range of excellent books available.
Fossils. Cyril Walker and David Ward. 2000. Dorling Kindersley. ISBN 0751327964.
Fossils - the Key to the Past. Richard Fortey. 2002. Natural History Museum.
ISBN 0565091638.
Minerals, Rocks and Fossils. A. Bishop, A. Woolley, & W. Hamilton. 1999. Philip’s.
ISBN 0540074292.
The following handbooks from the Natural History Museum are exceptionally useful, with
drawings of the most commonly found British fossils from each era:
British Palaeozoic Fossils. (2001 reprint). Intercept. ISBN 1898298718.
British Mesozoic Fossils. (2001 reprint). Intercept. ISBN 1898298734.
British Caenozoic Fossils. (2001 reprint). Intercept. ISBN 1898298777.
Acknowledgements. The author would like to thank Dr Colin Scrutton
for helpful comments on this guide, and Dr Paul Taylor for advice
about bryozoans.
 7 Sponges
Millions of yrs ago
Sponges are the simplest multicellular animals. They
0
lack definite tissues and organs, e.g. they have no

Quaternary
nervous system.
pores for
taking in
1.8
water

Cenozoic
Neogene
23

Palaeogene
Siphonia
stem Cretaceous
roots
Rhizopoterion 65

Cretaceous
roots Cretaceous
10 cm 12 cm

Age Mesozoic
146

Jurassic
Cambrian Period to present day.
Environment
200
Mainly marine, on the sea floor; some live in freshwater.
Triassic

Description
Sponges have a skeleton of calcium carbonate, silica, or, 251
as in some modern bath sponges, horny organic material.
Permian

Water passes in through the sponge’s many surface

pores, often to the central cavity of a sack-like body, and
out through a large hole at the top. Sponges vary greatly
299
in shape. Some have a stalk, others are encrusting and
Carboniferous

irregular. Sponges feed by filtering off minute organic

particles from the water.
Interesting fact
359
Sponges are the most common fossils in pieces of flint
Devonian

from the Chalk. You can often find them by looking in flint
Palaeozoic

gravel drives and paths in central and south-east England.

416
Silurian

443
Ordovician

488
Cambrian

Sponges from the chalk preserved in flint.

The largest round specimen is nearly 4 cm in
diameter.
542
 8 Bryozoans
Millions of yrs ago Bryozoans are a separate phylum of colonial animals.
0 They are common fossils, but being rather small and
Quaternary

often delicate, are relatively unfamiliar.

1.8
Cenozoic
Neogene

23 fan-shaped,
net-like colony
Palaeogene

Fenestella 3 cm across
Carboniferous
65 The apertures, which occur in two rows along the
branches, are not visible at this magnification.
Cretaceous

Hallopora 2 cm
apertures
0.1-0.2 mm
Silurian
across A cylindrical, branching colony
146 with large round apertures.
Mesozoic

5 mm
Jurassic

one
zooecium
200

Stomatopora aperture
Triassic

Jurassic 4 cm
An encrusting, thread-like
colony. irregular, leaf-like
251 colony
Permian

close up Metrarabdotos
1.5 mm across Neogene
299
Age
Ordovician Period to present day.
Carboniferous

Environment
Most live in shallow seas, some in freshwater. All aquatic.
359
Description
Devonian

Colonies range from millimetres to 1 m across, but the

Palaeozoic

individuals (called zooids) that make up the colonies are

416
tiny, usually less than a mm long. Each zooid builds a tube
or box (zooecium) of calcium carbonate, with an aperture
Silurian

(opening). Colonies vary greatly in form, e.g. encrusting

sheets (‘sea mats’), net-like fronds or branching twigs.
Some bryozoans look like small corals. The zooids’
443
tentacles filter plankton from the water. Bryozoans often
Ordovician

occur in limestones. Most require microscopic study to

identify correctly.

488 Interesting fact

Bryozoans can often be seen on modern
Cambrian

beaches, encrusting sea-weed, rocks

and shells.
542
 9 Graptolites
Millions of yrs ago
Graptolites are an extinct group of colonial animals. They
0
were hemichordates, a phylum with few species today.

Quaternary
Climacograptus Tetragraptus
Ordovician Ordovician
1.8

Cenozoic
Neogene
2 cm 1.5 cm 23
1.5 cm

Palaeogene
Dicellograptus
Ordovician
Monograptus 65
Silurian

Cretaceous
first-formed
part of colony 2 cm

146
tiny flattened cups Mesozoic
Jurassic
(thecae) in which
individuals of the
Cyrtograptus colony lived
Silurian 200
3 cm
Triassic

Age
251
Cambrian Period to Carboniferous Period.
Graptolites are relatively common in Ordovician and
Permian

Silurian rocks, and are very useful in dating them as

many species were widespread and short-lived.
299
Environment
Carboniferous

Entirely marine. A few lived attached to the sea floor,

but most lived in the open sea, drifting with currents or
possibly swimming feebly as part of the zooplankton.
359
Description
Devonian

Many look like little saw blades a few centimetres

Palaeozoic

long, with ‘teeth’ on one or both sides of the ‘saw’. The

‘teeth’ were actually tiny cups (thecae) that housed the 416
individuals with filter-feeding tentacles which made up
Silurian

the colony. A few colonies were fan-shaped with many

branches. Only the resistant skeletons (originally made
of collagen-like proteins) occur as fossils. They are often 443
found in fine-grained rocks such as dark shales laid down
Ordovician

in quiet, oxygen-poor conditions on the sea floor.

Interesting fact 488
The name ‘graptolite’ means ‘writing
Cambrian

on stone’ because they resemble pencil

markings.
542
 10 Worms and Trace fossils
Worms
Worm is an informal name for various invertebrate groups belonging to different
phyla. Most types of worm are entirely soft-bodied, and trace fossils may be the
only evidence of their existence. Some worms, especially a group of polychaetes
(bristle-worms) called serpulids (in the Phylum Annelida), secrete a tubular
shell for living in, usually made of calcium carbonate (calcite or aragonite).
Some tube-secreting worms are free-living (not attached to anything), whilst
others cement themselves to hard surfaces such as shells, shell fragments and
pebbles. Many worm tubes are rather irregular in shape.

Serpula. Jurassic. This Rotularia. Palaeogene. This Ditrupa. Palaeogene. This

form of worm tube is spirally coiled form, about 2 gently curving, tusk-like form
often found attached to cm across, was free-living on was free-living on the sea
large oyster shells on the sea floor. floor. Typical length 2 cm.
which the worm grew.
Typical length 2-5 cm.

Trace fossils
Trace fossils are evidence of animal activity, such
as footprints, trails, burrows, borings, bite marks or
droppings. They are often the only evidence we have of
extinct organisms whose bodies lacked any hard parts.
Even if the organism that made the trace had hard parts,
the culprit is rarely found at the scene. Most trace fossils
are classified by their shape, or by the type of behaviour Droppings from an
unknown Jurassic
represented, not the trace-maker, which can rarely be animal. This coprolite
identified with certainty. Sometimes an individual may (fossil dung) is preserved
make several different-looking traces, and the same- in iron pyrites. 13 cm.
looking trace may be made by several different types of
animal. See also the introduction (p.4).

A horizontal ‘U’ shaped

Trace fossils made by
unknown animals, probably
mostly worms making trails
across mud, preserved
in relief on the base of a
sandstone bed. Palaeogene.
5 cm across.
burrow, called
Rhizocorallium, probably
made by a crustacean.
Jurassic. 20 cm.
Trace fossils made by various
different types of animal
moving over, sitting on, or
burrowing through, sediment,
mixing light-coloured sand
with darker mud. Jurassic.
15 cm across.
 11 Brachiopods
hole for
the pedicle
during life

calcite shell
shell
4 cm
pedicle (stalk)

sea floor 4 cm
Magellania Epithyris
A modern brachiopod in
Jurassic
life position
ribs
plane of
symmetry

growth
lines
2 cm
3 cm

Gibbithyris Tetrarhynchia
Cretaceous Jurassic

4 cm 18 cm

Antiquatonia Gigantoproductus
Carboniferous Carboniferous

dark, phosphatic 1.5 cm

shell (unlike most
brachiopod shells
which are made
of calcite)

3 cm

Lingula Dolerorthis
Carboniferous Silurian
 12 Brachiopods
Millions of yrs ago
Brachiopods (pronounced ‘bracky-o-pods’) are a
0
separate phylum.
Quaternary

Age
Cambrian Period to present day. Brachiopods were
1.8 much more abundant and diverse during the Palaeozoic
Cenozoic

and Mesozoic Eras than they are today.

Neogene

Environment
23
Entirely marine. They live on the sea floor.
Palaeogene

Description
Brachiopods all have a shell enclosing the soft tissues,
65 including a feeding device which filters off food
particles. The shell has two sides (called valves) which
Cretaceous

are usually found closed together in fossils. Unlike in

most bivalves (molluscs), one side of a brachiopod shell
146 is almost always larger than the other. In brachiopods,
the plane of symmetry runs through the two sides of
Mesozoic
Jurassic

the shell, whereas in bivalves it runs between the two

valves. In most brachiopods the shell is composed
200 of calcite, though some (e.g. Lingula, overleaf) are
phosphatic.
Triassic

Many brachiopods are attached to the sea floor by a

stalk called the pedicle. This stalk is not preserved in
251 fossils, but its presence is indicated by a hole passing
through the larger of the two valves.
Permian

Brachiopods are the commonest fossil in many

Palaeozoic shallow marine limestones and shales.
299
Interesting fact
Carboniferous

They are sometimes called ‘lamp-shells’ after their

resemblance to Roman oil lamps.
359
A B
Devonian
Palaeozoic

416
Silurian

443
Ordovician

A, B: Terebratula. Cretaceous. Two views of the

same specimen. 4 cm. The hole through which the
488 pedicle emerged can clearly be seen in A.
Cambrian

542
13 Gastropods
apex (first-formed
3 cm part of shell)
aperture through
which head and
foot emerged

central rod
4 cm (columella)

spirally
coiled
Viviparus tube into
Cretaceous Fusinus which body
Palaeogene withdrew
long canal for siphon along
which clean water was
drawn to the gills 5 cm

cross-section through the shell of

an undetermined genus, showing
spines internal structure

growth
lines

Palaeoxestina
Palaeogene
5.5 cm
aperture
canal for siphon 2 cm

Cornulina
Palaeogene
Symmetrocapulus
Jurassic
3.5 cm

limpet-like form, 7 cm
indicating specialisation
for clinging to rocks with
large, sucker-like foot

4 cm

unusually, the
aperture is on the
left in this species
Natica
(N. contraria) Neptunea
Neogene Neogene
 14 Gastropods
Millions of yrs ago Gastropods are a group of molluscs that includes slugs
0 and snails. The molluscs form a very diverse phylum,
Quaternary

and are some of the commonest fossils. Many molluscs

have shells composed of calcite and/or aragonite,
but some are only soft-bodied. Three mollusc groups
1.8 are particularly important, both as fossils and today:
gastropods, bivalves and cephalopods. There are several
Cenozoic
Neogene

other mollusc groups, some of which are extinct.

23
Age
Cambrian Period to present day. Gastropods first
Palaeogene

became really abundant in the Cenozoic Era, exceeding

other molluscs in numbers and diversity, as they do today.
65 Environment
Cretaceous

Most gastropods are marine, in shallow seas, but many

inhabit rivers, lakes or ponds; others live on dry land.
146 Description
Mesozoic

Familiar shelled gastropods include garden snails and, by

Jurassic

the sea, whelks, winkles, limpets, cowries and abalones.

The shell is absent in forms such as garden slugs.
200
The shell is usually a tapering tube coiled in a screw-like
Triassic

spiral. At rest, the animal’s body is pulled into the shell,

but when moving, the head and muscular foot (used for
251
creeping around) extend from the aperture. The shell
is usually made of aragonite, rather than calcite, and in
Permian

fossils the aragonite has often dissolved away, leaving

a hole. Some gastropods with rather flat shells may look
at first like ammonites, but gastropod shells are never
299
divided into separate chambers as are ammonite shells.
Carboniferous

Interesting fact
Occasionally fossil gastropod shells show patterns of
colour banding. Some Palaeogene ones from southern
359
England 35 million years old show purples and browns,
Devonian

but the colour itself has probably altered.

Palaeozoic

A B
416
Silurian

443
Ordovician

488
A: Internal mould of Aptyxiella, a Jurassic gastropod
Cambrian

common in Portland Stone (and known as a ‘Portland

Screw’). The aragonite shell has dissolved away. 7 cm.
B: Volutospina. Palaeogene. 9 cm.
542
 15 Bivalves
an oyster with
plane of typical irregular
symmetry form, lacking
symmetry

9 cm

5.5 cm zig-zag
margin
Pleuromya growth lines
Jurassic (successive edges of Lopha
shell during growth) Jurassic
interlocking ‘teeth’
and sockets to
ribs internal view
growth lines guide valves back
into a tight fit as
shell closed

8 cm Venericor
Palaeogene muscle scars marking
site of muscles that
hinge line closed shell

umbo (first-formed
part of shell)
ribs

8.5 cm
9 cm conspicuous
Pseudopecten growth lines
Jurassic Inoceramus
Cretaceous
small bumps
(tubercles)

Myophorella
Jurassic

7 cm
 16 Bivalves
Millions of yrs ago
Examples of these molluscs include cockles, mussels,
0
scallops and oysters.
Quaternary

Age
Cambrian Period to present day. More common in the
1.8 Mesozoic and Cenozoic than the Palaeozoic.
Cenozoic
Neogene

Environment
Entirely aquatic. Most are marine, living on shallow sea
23 floors, though some inhabit freshwater. Many burrow into
Palaeogene

sediment, some cement onto, or bore into, objects, whilst

others attach by threads. A few can swim intermittently.
Description
65
Most bivalves have a shell with two parts (called valves) of
Cretaceous

equal size and shape, one a mirror image of the other (unlike
in brachiopods). However, some bivalves such as oysters
lack any symmetry. Shells may be made of aragonite (which
146
often dissolves away) or calcite, or a mixture of both. The
Mesozoic
Jurassic

shell is opened at the hinge by an elastic ligament (not

fossilised) and closed by one or two muscles (which leave
attachment scars on internal surfaces). Single, detached
200 valves are common as fossils (unlike in brachiopods).
Triassic

Interesting fact
One very common Jurassic oyster with a thick, curved
251 shell, a species of Gryphaea, is often known in English
folklore as the ‘Devil’s toenail’. It is unclear whether
Permian

the shells were once believed to be the actual toenails

of devils, or whether people thought they were what a
299 devil’s toenail ought to look like.
Carboniferous

A B

359
Devonian
Palaeozoic

C
416
Silurian

443
A: Gryphaea arcuata. The Jurassic oyster species
Ordovician

nicknamed the ‘Devil’s toenail’. Side view. 5 cm.

B: Gryphaea dilatata. Above: complete shell of this
Jurassic oyster. Note the lack of symmetry
488 (compare brachiopods). Below: internal view of a
detached upper valve showing the single, central
Cambrian

muscle scar. 8 cm.

C: Glycymeris. Neogene. Two muscle scars are
clearly visible on the inside of this valve. 5.5 cm.
542
 17 Belemnites
phragmocone

guard

Reconstruction of a living belemnite. The soft tissue is shown as if partially

removed to reveal the internal skeleton (the bit found fossilised) at the rear.

radiating faint
calcite concentric
Chambered
crystals growth lines
phragmocone.
This often
falls out or
dissolves
away to leave
a cone-shaped
hole.

Cylindroteuthis
Jurassic
Cross-section
The radiating calcite crystals
distinguish belemnites from
burrows, bones, wood and 18 cm
other structures that lack them.

3 cm

Neohibolites 8 cm
Cretaceous 9 cm

Acrocoelites Gonioteuthis
Jurassic Cretaceous
 18 Belemnites
Millions of yrs ago
Belemnites are an extinct group of cephalopods (molluscs)
0
that in many ways were probably rather like squid.
Quaternary

Age
Jurassic Period to the end of the Cretaceous Period.
1.8
Environment
Cenozoic
Neogene

Entirely marine. Belemnites were carnivores that swam

in the open sea.
23
Description
Palaeogene

Belemnites had a unique, bullet-shaped, internal shell

called a guard, which being made of calcite was easily
65 fossilised. At the wider (head) end of the guard was
Cretaceous

a chambered structure made of aragonite called the

phragmocone. In fossils this has often fallen out or
dissolved away, leaving a cone-shaped hole.
146
The whole living animal was several times longer than
Mesozoic
Jurassic

the guard, which was entirely surrounded by soft tissue.

The guard at the rear is thought to have counterbalanced
the weight of the head at the front, keeping the body level
200
when swimming.
Triassic

Belemnites are often found in Jurassic and Cretaceous

clays, from which they easily get washed out. Sometimes
251 a very large number occur together in the same bed of
rock, possibly representing post-mating death events
Permian

like those which occur in modern squid. Some small,

isolated patches of belemnite guards are probably the
299
regurgitated, indigestible remains of belemnites eaten by
marine reptiles.
Carboniferous

Interesting fact
In mediaeval times, belemnites were thought to be
359 petrified thunderbolts (lightning strikes). The word
‘belemnite’ comes from the Greek for dart or javelin.
Devonian
Palaeozoic

416
Silurian

443
Ordovician

Pachyteuthis. Jurassic. 11 cm. Note the hole at

the end on the right where the phragmocone has
488 fallen out or dissolved away.
Cambrian

542
 19 Ammonites and Goniatites
internal moulds
broken edge (infillings) of two
of shell successive chambers. Ammonites
The chambers often
get filled with sediment
or calcite crystals.
ribs body chamber missing (crushed or
broken off). Sometimes the body
chamber is found on its own, as a
separate internal mould, especially if
first-formed the inner chambers have been crushed.
part of shell
6 cm highly complex suture pattern typical
of ammonites. The sutures mark the
Oxynoticeras chamber partitions, or septa.
Jurassic
keel (ridge)
with grooves
either side
strong ribs,
varying in
length

6.5 cm 6.5 cm
Hildoceras Cardioceras
Jurassic Jurassic
sickle-shaped keel (ridge)
ribs
later-formed
part of shell 7.5 cm
loosely coiled

Some
ammonites,
especially in early-formed
the Cretaceous, part of shell
became uncoiled spirally coiled
8 cm as usual
or coiled into
Harpoceras irregular, curious Scaphites
Jurassic shapes. Cretaceous

body chamber
Goniatites missing Goniatites
Carboniferous
4 cm This group of
cephalopods
lived only in
Palaeozoic seas.
Their chambered
shells had sutures
with a complexity
between that of
shell mostly broken away, simple zig- nautiloids and
revealing internal chambers zag suture ammonites.
filled with sediment
 20 Ammonites and Goniatites
Millions of yrs ago Ammonites and their older relatives, the goniatites,
0 are extinct groups of cephalopods (molluscs). Living
Quaternary

cephalopods include squid, cuttlefish, octopus and nautilus.

Age
1.8 Ammonites: Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous.
Goniatites: Devonian Period to Permian Period.
Cenozoic
Neogene

Environment
23 Entirely marine, like all other cephalopods past and
present. The majority of ammonites inhabited shallow
Palaeogene

seas. They were predators with an active lifestyle,

swimming and catching prey with their tentacles.
65 Description
Cretaceous

The shell of an ammonite is a coiled tube, divided into many

separate chambers by partitions (called septa). The septa
of ammonites are highly complex in shape. When viewed
146 from the side, where the outer shell has been broken off
Mesozoic

or dissolved away, the edges of ammonite septa can be

Jurassic

seen as very wiggly lines called sutures. This distinguishes

ammonites from nautiloids, in which the sutures are
200 straight or gently curving. Ammonite shells were made
of aragonite, which in fossils has often dissolved away or
Triassic

recrystallised to calcite.
The body of the ammonite was housed in the outermost
251 part of the shell, the body chamber. A thin tube used for
regulating buoyancy (the siphuncle) extended back through
Permian

all the chambers. The soft parts, e.g. tentacles, have never
been found as fossils, so exactly what living ammonites
299 looked like is unknown. Ammonites were abundant,
Carboniferous

diverse and widespread. They rapidly evolved many

different species, and so are useful for matching up rocks
of the same age in different places.

359
Interesting fact
Ammonites were called ‘snakestones’ in English folklore.
Devonian

They were believed to be the petrified remains of snakes

Palaeozoic

that once infested places such as Whitby in Yorkshire.

416
Silurian

443
Ordovician

A B
488
A: The ammonite Dactylioceras. Jurassic. 8 cm.
Cambrian

B: Close-up of a part of an ammonite to show

the complex sutures characteristic of ammonites.
Amaltheus. Jurassic. View 3.5 cm across.
542
21 Nautiloids
Millions of yrs ago
Nautiloids are a group of cephalopods (molluscs).
0

Quaternary
shell dissolved away, body chamber for
showing chambers living animal
filled with sediment

simple, gently 1.8

Cenozoic
curving sutures

Neogene
Cenoceras
Jurassic 6 cm
23

Palaeogene
straight broken edge
Michelinoceras sutures of shell
Silurian 65

Cretaceous
9 cm (incomplete)
Age
Cambrian Period to present day.
146
Environment Mesozoic

Entirely marine. Many extinct nautiloids lived in shallow Jurassic

seas, but the few living species of nautilus inhabit deep
200
water. Tentacles are used to catch prey.
Triassic

Description
In the past, nautiloid shells had many different shapes,
some straight, some curved, and some irregularly 251
coiled. Except for a few species in the Triassic Period, all
Permian

straight-shelled nautiloids lived in the Palaeozoic Era.

Like in ammonites, the tubular shell of nautiloids was
299
divided into many chambers by partitions (called septa).
Carboniferous

Unlike in ammonites, the septa of nautiloids have a very

simple shape. When viewed from the side, where the
outer shell has been broken off or dissolved away, the
edges of nautiloid septa can be seen as straight or gently 359
curving lines, called sutures.
Devonian

Interesting fact
Palaeozoic

Some straight nautiloids were over 5 metres long.

416
siphuncle (tube body chamber
Silurian

connecting chambers) septa (at head end)

443
Ordovician

Section through part of a straight nautiloid. 488

Ordovician. 12 cm.
Cambrian

542
22 Corals Rugose
Tabulate
Scleractinian

Scleractinian corals

colonies

9 cm

5 cm

Isastraea Fungiastraea
Jurassic Jurassic
top of aragonite skeleton on
which sat the anemone-like soft
parts when the coral was alive septa
(radial partitions)

solitary
individual

4 cm 3 cm

Montlivaltia Parasmilia
Jurassic Cretaceous

colony composed of a
few large individuals

Thecosmilia
Jurassic

7 cm
23 Corals Rugose
Tabulate
Scleractinian

Rugose
wrinkled
surface corals
solitary
individuals

Tryplasma
Silurian
Dibunophyllum
5 cm Carboniferous

10 cm
septa
(radial partitions)

colonies
top view

tubes
3 mm
across
5 cm

Siphonodendron Acervularia
Silurian
Carboniferous

reduced
septa Tabulate
corals
close-up

6 cm 6 cm
Heliolites Favosites
Silurian Silurian
septa (radial partitions)
missing or reduced

4 cm

2 cm

Syringopora Halysites
Carboniferous Silurian
 24 Corals Rugose
Tabulate
Scleractinian

Millions of yrs ago

Corals are by far the most important fossil group of the
0
Phylum Cnidaria (pronounced with a silent ‘C’). Sea
Quaternary

anemones, jellyfish and hydroids are also cnidarians,

but being soft-bodied these groups are very rare as
fossils. Cnidarians have a central mouth around which
1.8 are stinging tentacles for catching prey.
Cenozoic
Neogene

Age
Ordovician Period to present day.
23
Environment
Palaeogene

All corals are, and have been, entirely marine. They

usually live on the sea floor.
65
Description
Cretaceous

Corals secrete a skeleton of calcium carbonate below the

soft, sea anemone-like parts at the top. Corals may either
146 be solitary individuals, or form colonies in which many
genetically identical, linked individuals share a skeleton.
Mesozoic
Jurassic

There are three main groups of corals:

Rugose corals (solitary individuals or colonies).
200
Age: Ordovician Period to Permian Period.
Triassic

Tabulate corals (always colonies).

Age: Ordovician Period to Permian Period.
251
Scleractinian corals (solitary individuals or colonies).
Permian

Age: Triassic Period to present day.

Interesting fact
299
Although scleractinian corals are much younger than
Carboniferous

rugose or tabulate corals, their fossils are often much

less well preserved because their skeletons are made of
aragonite, rather than calcite. Aragonite is unstable over
359
long periods, and tends to dissolve away or recrystallise
to calcite.
Devonian
Palaeozoic

A B
416
Silurian

443
Ordovician

A: Lithostrotion. Carboniferous. 5 cm. A colonial

rugose coral.
488
B: Kodonophyllum. Silurian. 2.5 cm. A solitary
Cambrian

rugose coral.

542
25 Sea urchins (echinoids)
petal-like rays of plates bearing tiny
top view pores through which tube feet projected

5 cm side view
interlocking calcite plates
(edges often hard to see)
Micraster
Cretaceous
mouth
pores for
top view tube feet underside

5 cm attachment
points for
anus tiny spines
Echinocorys (fallen off)
Cretaceous
side view
ball joint for base of
ray of pore- large spines (fallen off)
top view
bearing plates

anus Hemicidaris side view

3 cm (mouth is central on
Jurassic
underside)

spines often
3 cm 3 cm
Nucleolites break across
Jurassic flat, reflective
surfaces
top view

base of spine
3 cm with socket
anus for ball joint
examples of large
detached spines
 26 Sea urchins (echinoids)
Millions of yrs ago
Sea urchins or echinoids (pronounded ‘eck-in-oids’) and
0
crinoids are the most common fossil echinoderms (‘eck-
Quaternary

eye-no-derms’). Other echinoderm groups today include

starfish (asteroids) and brittle stars (ophiuroids). There are
also several extinct groups. Echinoderm means ‘spiny skin’,
1.8 referring to the spines or hard, warty bumps that project
Cenozoic

from the surface in some groups. Many echinoderms have

Neogene

a five-rayed arrangement of calcite plates.

23 Age
Palaeogene

Ordovician Period to present day. Sea urchins are

much more common in Mesozoic and Cenozoic rocks
than in Palaeozoic ones.
65 Environment
Cretaceous

Entirely marine, now and in the past, like all

echinoderms. Most sea urchins live in shallow seas.
Well-rounded, globular ones usually move around over
146
the sea floor, and have a mouth at the centre of the
Mesozoic
Jurassic

underside. Less rounded, flattened or heart-shaped ones

tend to burrow in soft sediment, and may have a mouth
placed less centrally.
200
Description
Triassic

Sea urchins have a shell (or test) made of many calcite

plates thinly covered with soft tissue. Most sea urchins
251 have five petal-like rays of plates with tiny pores through
which tube feet project. Tube feet are multipurpose,
Permian

extendible tentacles used especially in feeding, respiration

and locomotion. Some sea urchins have very large spines,
299 others only tiny ones; the spines usually drop off after death.
Carboniferous

Interesting fact
Some Cretaceous sea urchins were called ‘shepherds’
crowns’ in English folklore as they had five rays
359 converging on the apex, like the ribs on a crown.
Shepherds may have come across them, weathered out
Devonian

of the Chalk, when tending sheep on the downlands of

Palaeozoic

southern England.
416
A B
Silurian

443
Ordovician

488
A: Echinocorys. Cretaceous. 5 cm.
Cambrian

Typical preservation in flint.

B: Tylocidaris. Cretaceous. 6.5 cm. View of
underside. The large spines were defensive.
542
 27 Crinoids
anal tube
branched, flexible
arms which opened
up for feeding

branched arms
for gathering cup with central
food particles mouth at top

flexible stem with

many calcite plates
(stem ossicles are
Each plate of a called columnals)
crinoid is called
an ossicle. cup 2.5 cm
cup (or calyx)
reconstruction broken stem
on sea floor
Sagenocrinites
root-like Silurian
holdfast
Dictenocrinus broken bases of arms
Ordovician (seldom preserved)

calcite plates
incomplete
of cup
arm (others
broken off)

globular cup cup 3.5 cm

with large,
thin plates

cup 3.5 cm
no stem broken stem
Marsupites Apiocrinites
Cretaceous Jurassic

central canal
for soft tissue

plates typically
3 – 15 mm across
stem plates (columnals) are usually
round or star-shaped with 5 points
 28 Crinoids
Millions of yrs ago
0
Crinoids are echinoderms that are sometimes called ‘sea
lilies’ as some look superficially like plants.
Quaternary

Age
Cambrian Period to present day. Crinoids were much
1.8
more abundant and diverse during the Palaeozoic and
Cenozoic
Neogene

Mesozoic Eras than they are today.

Environment
23 Entirely marine. Most fossil ones lived in shallow seas.
Palaeogene

Description
Most ancient crinoids were attached to the sea floor by
65 a stem or stalk with a root-like base. Most stemmed
crinoids feed by bending their flexible, branching
Cretaceous

appendages (called ‘arms’) outwards and backwards into

the current, looking like an umbrella in the wind. Tube feet
146
on the arms gather tiny food particles suspended in the
water, and hair-like structures waft the food towards the
Mesozoic
Jurassic

central mouth situated in a cup (or calyx) at the top of the

stem. Some crinoids lack stems and are free-swimming.
200
Interesting fact
B
Triassic

Some rocks consist almost

entirely of isolated crinoid
251 plates and stem fragments.
Permian

299
Carboniferous

359 C
Devonian
Palaeozoic

416
Silurian

443
Ordovician

A: Marsupiocrinites. Silurian. Cup 3 cm across.

488 B and C: Carboniferous Limestone with crinoid

debris – fragments of stems and isolated stem
Cambrian

plates. C shows a polished slab of crinoidal

limestone with stem fragments cut across at
various angles. Largest stems 1 cm in diameter.

542
 Trilobites
Note: Most trilobite fossils are bits and
29 pieces of exoskeleton shed during moulting;
complete specimens like these are rare.

glabella line of weakness

compound along which
headshield eye headshield split
during moulting

13 trunk
segments
trunk 8 trunk
segments

5 cm large
tailpiece
tailpiece
10 cm
left lobe axis right lobe

Calymene Basilicus
Ordovician
Silurian
rows of pits with unknown
function (not eyes)

smooth 3 cm
exoskeleton
4 cm

Illaenus Trinucleus
Ordovician Ordovician

eye

very small 8 cm
20 cm tailpiece

Dalmanites
Paradoxides Silurian
Cambrian headshield with
lenses in large similar shape to
rolled up compound eye tailpiece
individual glabella
viewed from
the side only 2 trunk
segments

6 cm
6 mm

Phacops Agnostus
Silurian Cambrian
 30 Trilobites
Millions of yrs ago
The extinct trilobites, pronounced ‘try-lo-bites’, are the
0
most important group of fossil arthropods. Arthropods are
Quaternary

the largest and most diverse animal phylum; living groups

include crustaceans (crabs, lobsters, barnacles and
shrimps), insects, millipedes, centipedes, spiders, king
1.8 crabs, scorpions, and mites.
Cenozoic
Neogene

Age
Cambrian Period to Permian Period, i.e. trilobites lived
23 only in the Palaeozoic Era.
Palaeogene

Environment
Entirely marine. Most trilobites lived on or near the floor
65 of shallow seas; some swam higher up in the ocean.
Cretaceous

Description
Like other arthropods, trilobites had a hard outer shell
146 (the exoskeleton) divided into segments, and paired,
jointed appendages. They grew during periodic moulting
Mesozoic
Jurassic

when the exoskeleton was shed and a new, larger one

was formed. The trilobite exoskeleton was mostly made
200 of the mineral calcite, so it was easily preserved. Most
trilobite fossils represent bits and pieces of the exoskeleton
Triassic

cast off during moulting, rather than dead individuals.

Trilobites varied greatly in shape, but all had three lobes
251 running up and down their length (from which their name
is derived). They were also divided cross-ways into a
Permian

headshield, a trunk and a tailpiece. Many had compound

eyes, like those of flies. Some could roll up for defence.
299
Interesting fact
Carboniferous

Out of many thousands of different trilobite species,

only about twenty have been found with any legs and
antennae (none in Britain); these parts were normally too
359 soft to get fossilised.
Devonian

A B
Palaeozoic

416
Silurian

443
Ordovician

488 A: Ogygiocarella. Ordovician. 7.5 cm.

The eyes can be clearly seen.
Cambrian

B: Platycalymene. Ordovician. 6 cm.

Pieces of exoskeleton like this usually
represent moulted remains.
542
 31 Vertebrates

Detail of part of a fossil fish.

Note the thick, shiny scales. Shark teeth from the London Clay, Palaeogene. Two on
Palaeoniscus. Permian. the right have roots replaced by iron pyrites. Longest
2 cm across. tooth 4.5 cm.

A piece of fossil bone (from a reptile), showing the typical,

Shark tooth, adapted for rather irregular grain, lacking the fine, closely parallel
crushing invertebrate shells. lines more typical of fossil wood. Triassic. 7 cm.
Ptychodus. Cretaceous.
4.5 cm.

B
A

C
D
An ichthyosaur. These
marine reptiles lived only
in the Mesozoic Era. They
averaged 2-4 metres in
length; some reached
16 metres.

Four fossils representing ichthyosaurs. Jurassic. A: A vertebra from towards the rear of the
animal. Ichthyosaur vertebrae are typically dished in the centre (on both sides, i.e. front
and back), unlike those of plesiosaurs, which are flatter. The groove on the top is where
the spinal cord was located. 6.5 cm. B: A beach-worn vertebra from the neck region, with
rounded projections on left and right where the ribs articulated. 9 cm. C: Fragment of a rib
bone. 6 cm. D: One of the many bones of a paddle. 4.5 cm.

One of many bony plates

(called scutes) that were
embedded in the skin of
an alligator. Diplocynodon.
Palaeogene. 4.5 cm.
 32 Vertebrates
Millions of yrs ago
0 Geological history
Quaternary

The earliest vertebrates (animals with a bony or

cartilaginous skeleton and a skull) were Cambrian fish.
The five major groups of vertebrates today, in order
1.8 of evolutionary appearance, are fish, amphibians,
reptiles, mammals and birds. Vertebrate fossils are rare
Cenozoic
Neogene

compared with invertebrate fossils, mainly due to smaller

populations. Land-dwelling vertebrates, and those of
23
freshwater rivers and lakes, are rarer as fossils than
marine vertebrates.
Palaeogene

Fish first appeared in the Cambrian, but remained rare

until the Devonian, when they diversified and flourished.
65 The earliest fish lacked jaws; some had massive bony
armour. Sharks’ teeth are relatively common, especially in
Cretaceous

soft Mesozoic and Cenozoic marine clays, from which they

may get washed out and concentrated on beaches. Fish
scales may be quite common; they are usually dark brown,
146
shiny, often 1-2 mm in size, and usually rhombic (♦) in
Mesozoic

shape. The scales of many ancient fish were thicker than

Jurassic

those of familiar fish today.

200 Amphibians first appeared in the late Devonian, evolving

from a group of fish. Some Palaeozoic forms were several
Triassic

metres long, unlike modern frogs, toads and newts. Fossils

are very rare.
251 Reptiles first appeared in the Carboniferous, evolving
from a group of amphibians. Fossil reptiles are relatively
Permian

common, especially in Mesozoic rocks. Mesozoic land-

dwelling groups such as dinosaurs and pterosaurs (flying
299 reptiles) are much rarer than Mesosoic marine reptiles,
such as ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs, whose isolated
Carboniferous

vertebrae can quite often be found in Jurassic mudstones

and shales. Many ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs were
several metres in length. Finding just a single bone from
359
such a large, extinct animal can be truly exciting!
Mammals first appeared in the Triassic, evolving from a
Devonian

group of reptiles. Initially, in the Mesozoic, they were small

Palaeozoic

(mostly shrew-sized) and rare. Mammal diversity expanded

416 greatly in the Palaeogene, increasing towards the present
day. The most common mammal fossils in Britain are from
Silurian

the Quaternary, such as Ice Age mammoths and woolly

rhinos, as well as deer, horse and ox. Mammoths got
through six sets of teeth in a full life. Four teeth were fully
443
in operation at any one time, one in each of the four jaw
Ordovician

areas (upper and lower, left and right).

Birds first appeared in the Jurassic,
488 evolving from a group of small
carnivorous dinosaurs. During the
Cambrian

Cenozoic they expanded greatly in

diversity. Fossils are very rare.
542
33 Vertebrates
Identifying fossil vertebrates
Apart from trace fossils (e.g. footprints), vertebrates are mostly
represented by bones and teeth. These are almost always denser than
in life, because the pore spaces have been filled with extra minerals
(i.e. permineralised). Fossil bones and teeth tend to be dark in colour,
though Quaternary specimens tend to be lighter in colour and less
dense. Although sometimes quite common, isolated fragments of bone,
especially if lacking a distinctive shape, can be impossible to identify,
even for an expert. One may only be able to say, for example, that the
fossil is a piece of reptile bone. Fossil bone can be difficult to distinguish
from fossil wood. Bone tends to have a rather irregular, spongy texture,
lacking the very fine, closely parallel lines or ‘grain’ that fossil wood
often possesses.
Teeth are often easier to identify than bones. The teeth of fish (e.g.
sharks) and of reptiles tend to be dark and shiny, and often have
tiny ridges along their length. Reptile teeth tend to have a rather
simple cone-shape, and are usually similar wherever located in the
jaw, whereas in a mammal, teeth have different shapes for different
functions (incisors, canines, premolars and molars).

Close-up of a typical piece of Quaternary
Ice Age bone showing the spongy texture
of a broken surface, with pores still mostly
unfilled by extra minerals. 2.5 cm.
A B
A single woolly mammoth tooth.
Mammuthus. Quaternary. A: The biting
surface of this molar from the upper jaw
is the gently curving, ridged part at the
bottom of the photo; some of the roots can
be seen top left. 20 cm across; larger teeth
may reach 35 cm. B: Close up-view, 4.5 cm
across, of the biting surface, with ridges of
hard grey enamel.

Close-up of a typical piece of Jurassic bone A B B: A tooth of

(an ichthyosaur vertebra), showing the the dinosaur
spongy texture of a broken surface, with Iguanodon.
pores filled by white calcite. 2.5 cm. Cretaceous.
4.5 cm.

A: A typical fossil reptile tooth: cone-shaped,

and peg-like. The top of the tooth and the
root have broken off. Cretaceous. 3.5 cm.
Fragment of a woolly mammoth tusk
(greatly elongated incisor tooth). A single upper
Mammuthus. Quaternary. 24 cm. molar tooth of a
woolly rhinoceros.
Coelodonta.
Quaternary. 6 cm
across. The front
cover shows the
left of the lower
jaw with five cheek
teeth. 35 cm.
 34 Plants
Millions of yrs ago
0 Geological history
Quaternary

Although evidence from spores suggests that some

plants were growing on land in the Ordovician, it isn’t
until the Silurian that we have evidence for what the
1.8 whole plants looked like. These plants, initially just a
few centimetres high, colonised the edges of land via
Cenozoic
Neogene

freshwater rivers and lakes. The first trees with woody

trunks appeared in the late Devonian. The first really
23 abundant plant fossils in Britain occur in coal-bearing,
late Carboniferous rocks. Among the groups flourishing
Palaeogene

then in equatorial forests and low-lying swamps were

giant clubmosses, horsetails and seed ferns.
65 Conifers were the dominant forest tree throughout most
of the Mesozoic Era. Conifers, seed ferns, true ferns,
Cretaceous

cycads and ginkgos are relatively common in Jurassic

sandstones and shales in Britain.
146 Flowering plants (angiosperms) first appeared in the
Mesozoic

early Cretaceous. Initially rare, they expanded through

Jurassic

the late Cretaceous and Cenozoic Era, and today make

up the vast majority of plants in numbers and diversity.
200 Most trees, shrubs, grasses, hedgerow and garden
plants, and almost all our food crops, are angiosperms.
Triassic

In Britain, fruits and seeds of angiosperms can be found

in deposits such as the London Clay (Palaeogene). Fossil
251 pollen is very useful for revealing climatic fluctuations
during the Quaternary Ice Age.
Permian

Preservation
299 The most common type of plant preservation is where
Carboniferous

the tissues have been reduced to carbon (usually black

or very dark brown). In shales, many plants occur rather
flattened (due to compaction), whereas in sandstones
their 3-dimensional form is more often maintained.
359
Sometimes plant tissues may be replaced by quartz
Devonian

or other minerals precipitated from solutions seeping

through the sediment: this often preserves fine cellular
Palaeozoic

details, as, surprisingly, does charcoal from natural fires.

416 Pollen and spores are highly resistant to decay and often
very abundant as fossils, but a microscope is needed to
Silurian

see them after they have been chemically released from

the rock.
443 The presence of fossil land plants does not necessarily
Ordovician

indicate rocks formed in a terrestrial setting: they may

also occur in marine deposits, especially near estuaries,
and fragments of trunks and branches may drift far out to
488 sea before becoming waterlogged. On
stagnant sea floors, such bits of wood
Cambrian

are often replaced and permineralised

with iron pyrites (fool’s gold).
542
 35 Plants

scar where grass-like

leaf was attached
trunk and
branches
30 m high view 5 cm across

clubmoss tree root

Lepidodendron
Carboniferous

pinna (leaflet of
20 cm across compound leaf)
root system
(separately called Stigmaria)
5 cm long
infilling pinnule
of hollow
stem

5 cm
across

6 cm across
horsetail seed fern
rosettes of leaves of
Calamites Calamites (separately Neuropteris
Carboniferous called Annularia) Carboniferous
incomplete pinna (leaflet of
single leaf single leaf compound leaf)
pinna

pinnule

7 cm

Ginkgo
Jurassic 5 cm 4 cm
long long

cycad fern
Nilssonia Coniopteris
Jurassic Jurassic
36 Plants
Identifying fossil plants
This is a specialised skill, especially as whole plants are very rare.
Isolated, different parts of the same plant (stem, leaves, roots, seeds,
pollen, etc) have usually been given different names, which may be
retained even when associations become known. Fragments of fossil
wood are relatively common, but can be difficult to distinguish from
fossil bone. Fossil wood usually has a more regular ‘grain’ than fossil
bone, which has a rather irregular, spongy texture (with pore spaces, as
in wood, normally filled by minerals). When seen under a microscope,
angiosperm wood tends to have two cell types of distinctively different
sizes – larger vessels and smaller diameter fibres. In conifers and their
relatives, wood cells are basically all of the same type, and generally
small. Annual growth rings may be seen in some fossil wood.

A typical occurrence of Carboniferous plants, with small

fragments of various species preserved as thin carbon
films in shale. 5 cm.

The Carboniferous seed fern

Mariopteris, preserved in a
nodule of iron carbonate. Part
of a compound leaf. 9 cm. Cut and polished piece of
silicified fossil wood, with
tissues replaced by quartz.
5.5 cm.
A B

Fragments of fossil wood, all Jurassic. A: Internal view of a

broken piece. 4 cm. B: Piece of wood in limestone. Cracks
in the wood have been filled with calcite. 9 cm. C: Internal
view of a broken piece of wood, showing two directions of
grain at right angles to each other. 2.5 cm.
If Fossil Detectives has made you curious to learn more, you can take
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Published in 2008 by The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes,
MK7 6AA, to accompany Fossil Detectives, first broadcast on BBC4,
2008
Executive Producer: Fiona Pitcher
Series Producer: Kerensa Jennings
Academic Consultant & author of this field guide: Dr Peter Sheldon
Executive Producer for The Open University: Catherine McCarthy
Broadcast Learning Exec for The Open University: Dr Janet Sumner
Broadcast Project Manager: Andrea Mills
Graphic Designer & Illustrator: Glen Darby

Copyright © The Open University 2008

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Edited, designed and typeset by The Open University.
All photographs copyright © Peter Sheldon.
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