Collecting Fossils

How are fossils collected from the field?

After taking large fossils out of the ground, they can be wrapped in a field jacket, a plaster covering that protects the fossil so that it won’t break while it’s being transported and stored. This jacket is removed later.

Before digging starts, paleontologists do research to determine if there might be fossils in the area that are worth collecting. When they get to the site, they create detailed drawings and maps so the location and position of each fossil are recorded. This can help later when the fossils are being put back together to make a whole skeleton, or to study the relationships of the organisms whose fossils are being collected.

Photo by Nate Edwards

Once a fossil is discovered, it is carefully removed from the matrix (rock). Sometimes, in order to preserve the fragile fossils, a whole block of stone is removed along with the fossil itself. Other times, the fossil can be removed by itself. All kinds of tools are used to collect fossils: things as small as paintbrushes and hammers to heavy machinery and diamond saws!