Getting into the fossil record.

http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/education/explorations/tours/fossil/index.html
 Focus Questions

Directions: Answer the following questions as you navigate through Getting Into the Fossil Record.

1. What kinds of questions can the fossil record help us to answer?

2. Describe the difference between a body fossil and a trace fossil.

3. Why are organisms that are buried rapidly more likely to fossilize than those that are buried slowly or not at all?

4. Describe two ways an organism can become a fossil without being buried in sediment.

5. How does the environment affect the formation of fossils?

6. Describe three factors that could prevent an organism from long ago from ever turning up in a fossil collection today.

7. How are geologic maps useful to paleontologists?

8. In your own words, explain why the fossil record is not complete.