AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -The word fossil is derived from the Latin fossilis meaning ‘unearthed’. Preserved evidence of the body parts of ancient animals, plants and other life forms are called ‘body fossils’. ‘Trace fossils’ are the evidence left by organisms in sediment, such as footprints, burrows and plant roots.

Detailed explanation-2: -A preserved fossil, also known as a “true form fossil, ” is one that remains intact, or nearly intact, because of the method in which it was fossilized.

Detailed explanation-3: -Taphonomy is the branch of paleontology that focuses on the fossilization process. Fossils are preserved by three main methods: unaltered soft or hard parts, altered hard parts, and trace fossils.

Detailed explanation-4: -Fossils are the remains or traces of ancient life that have been preserved by natural processes. Examples of fossil include shells, bones, stone imprints of animals or microbes, exoskeletons, objects preserved in amber, petrified wood, coal, hair, oil, and DNA remnants. There are five types of fossils: Body Fossils.

Detailed explanation-5: -A trace fossil, also known as an ichnofossil ( /ˈɪknoʊfɒsɪl/; from Greek: ikhnos “trace, track"), is a fossil record of biological activity but not the preserved remains of the plant or animal itself.