Berean Builders Earth Science - Chapter 7

fossil

evidence of past life preserved within the geological record

decomposers

organisms whose main job is to decompose dead organisms

amber

a hard, partially transparent substance that looks like a mineral

resin

a thick, sticky liquid produced mostly by certain trees and a few other plants

fossil mold

a fossil formed when sediments lithify around an organism and it decays afterwards, leaving behind a cavity in the rock

lithify

transform (a sediment or other material) into stone

trilobite

an extinct three-lobed animal

fossil cast

a fossil formed when sediments enter a fossil mold and lithify

compression fossils

a fossil preserved in sedimentary rock that has undergone compression

The two halves of a compression fossil are called the ?

part and counterpart

trace fossils

a fossil that is formed by a trace of the organism rather than the organism itself

coprolite

fossilized animal feces

microfossils

fossils left by organisms so small you need a microscope to study them

Extant

something that exists presently

physical correlation

the matching of sedimentary strata based on their physical characteristics

temporal correlation

the matching of sedimentary strata based on the time they were formed

principle of faunal succession

the strata in which certain fossils are found can have a predictable position relative to the strata that contain other fossils

index fossil

a fossil that can be used to temporally correlate strata of sedimentary rock