Mystery Fossil Archives#1–9 | #10–18 | #19–27 | #28–36 | #37–45 | #46–54
Click on the image for a closer look at each Mystery Fossil. Can you guess
them all correctly? |
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#46—November–December, 2004 |
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This fossil was photographed at an angle that might make it difficult to identify, but even from the side, this one could fool you. The specimen measures just over 3 cm in width. No more clues—what do you think it is? |
#47—January–February, 2005 |
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Well-preserved Ordovician ice cream cones? Sorry, no. Though you may not be able to nail the genus, you should be able to identify the phylum or maybe even the class. What do you think it is? |
#48—March–April, 2005 |
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If you said “This is a rock,” you’d be right, but this is more than just your everyday rock . Better click on the image to get an enlarged view of this month’s Mystery Fossil. There is some symmetry to it…what do you think it is? |
#49—May, 2005 |
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Yes, this is a leaf from a tree — a 160-million-year-old one! This tree belongs to a plant group that is represented today by a single genus. What do you think it is? |
#50—June–July, 2005 |
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So you're thinking that this looks like part of a skull from some horned animal...perhaps a mammal. So far so good, but you’re going to have to be more specific. What do you think it is? |
#51—August–October, 2005 |
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We’re showing you just a small portion of this Mystery Fossil — If we showed you the whole thing, it would be too easy. The portion you see here is just 2 cm in width. Click the image for a slightly enlarged view. What do you think it is? |
#52—November–December, 2005 |
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Mark Goodwin holds a composite skull of a large herbivore that once roamed the North American southwest with early dinosaurs like Coelophysis. Can you identify the critter from this palatal view? The tusks should be a giveaway! |
#53—January, 2006 |
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Hmmm...a fossil peach pit perhaps? Afraid not. The peach pit hypothesis can be ruled out once you know that this object is little more than a fifth of a millimeter in width. This could be a real "test" of your knowledge. What do you think it is? |
#54—February–March, 2006 |
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A fossil pine cone you say? Nope. One of those prickly flower heads from a teasel? No. Trying to identify this Mystery Fossil may be particularly galling. What do you think it is? |
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