Name ______________________
Date _______________________
Fossils are the remains of living things that lived on Earth long ago.
Fossil (C36)
Trace fossil (C37)
Mold (C28)
Cast (C38)
Answer the questions below about fossils use these words – amber, mold, cast, carbon film,
trace fossil, petrified fossil.
1. A crab shell is buried in sediments. The sediments get pressed and squeezed into stone. Meanwhile,
the crab shell gets washed away, leaving a hollow space the shape of the crab shell. What kind of fossil
is this? ________________________________________
2. An insect is trapped in the sap of an evergreen tree. The tree sap hardens to form a clear, yellow
material. The entire body of the insect is preserved. What is the material that holds the fossil called?
___________________________________________
3. A leaf is buried in sediments. The sediments are exposed to high heat and pressure. As this happens,
most of the chemicals in the leaf evaporate. The only thing that remains is a thing, black film that is in
the shape of the leaf. What is this kind of fossil called? _________________
4. A tree trunk is buried in sediments. Minerals slowly take the place of the materials that formed the
tree trunk. Even the structures of the cells are preserved. What do we call a fossil that forms in this
way? _____________________________________________
5. Fossil footprints of an extinct kind of elephant are preserved in rock. Tracks a snake made in sand
are preserved in another kind of rock. What do we call these kinds of fossils?
____________________________________________
6. A hollow space was left where a bone belonging to an ancient bird had been buried. Minerals filled
in the hollow space. What do we call a fossil that forms this way? ____________________
WB 147