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fossil record
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Fossil record
Dr. Jingmai O'Connor smiles and gestures toward a fossil of Archaeopteryx on display at the Field Museum, with exhibit text visible in the background.
Side-by-side illustration comparing a modern black-and-white bird on the left with a feathered dinosaur, Archaeopteryx, on the right, both with wings spread.
The video thumbnail image shows an illustration of the bird dinosaur Longipteryx alongside two toy dinosaur figurines.
Diagram comparing two columns of rock layers, labeled A and B, each containing distinct fossil illustrations at various depths. The matching fossils in corresponding layers show how geologists use fossils to determine the relative ages of rock layers, even when the sections are separated by 200 miles. Map depicting the ancient supercontinent Gondwana, with colored bands showing the overlapping geographic home ranges of four prehistoric species-Cynognathus, Lystrosaurus, Glossopteris, and Mesosaurus-extending across present-day South America, Africa, India, Antarctica, and Australia. A vertical geologic time scale chart spanning from 650 million years ago to the present, with colored bands for each era and period. Illustrations and labels highlight key evolutionary events such as the appearance of skeletal elements, first fishes, land plants, amphibians, reptiles, dinosaurs, mammals, and humans.
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fossil record: References & Edit History

Article Contributors

Primary Contributors

  • The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
    Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.

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Article History

Type Description Contributor Date
Modified link of Web site: PNAS - The future of the fossil record: Paleontology in the 21st century. May 12, 2026
Add new Web site: Lyell Collection - The ties linking rock and fossil records and why they are important for palaeobiodiversity studies. Apr 02, 2026
Add new Web site: National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - Studying Function and Behavior in the Fossil Record. Feb 18, 2026
Add new Web site: PNAS - The future of the fossil record: Paleontology in the 21st century. May 14, 2025
Add new Web site: Biology LibreTexts - The Fossil Record as Evidence for Evolution. Mar 21, 2025
Add new Web site: University of Chicago - Department of Geophysical Sciences - The Nature of the Fossil Record (PDF). Jan 17, 2025
Media added. Oct 18, 2024
Media added. May 14, 2024
Added an illustration of fossil-containing strata. Jan 16, 2020
Changed “Florida Everglades” to “Florida Everglades, South America's Pantanal, and Botswana's Okavango delta.” Jan 16, 2020
Add new Web site: Virtual Fossil Museum - Fossil Record. Jan 06, 2012
Add new Web site: How Stuff Works - Science - How incomplete is the fossil record? Jan 06, 2012
Media added. Jan 21, 2011
New article added. Mar 17, 2009
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