LIFE SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Fossils are the preserved remains of plants and animals whose bodies were buried in sediments, such as sand and mud, under ancient seas, lakes and rivers. Fossils also include any preserved trace of life that is typically more than 10 000 years old.

Detailed explanation-2: -Mudstone, shale, and limestone are examples of sedimentary rock likely to contain fossils. As the layers of sediment build up on top of one another, they create a physical timeline. The oldest layers, along with the organisms that were fossilized as they formed, are deepest.

Detailed explanation-3: -If water rich in minerals fills this space, crystals can form and create a fossil in the shape of the original bone or shell, known as a cast fossil. Or sediment can fill the mould and form a cast fossil.

Detailed explanation-4: -Sedimentary rocks have the ability to retain fossils because unlike most igneous and metamorphic rocks, sedimentary rocks occurs at temperatures and pressure that do not obliterate fossil remnants. Therefore, fossils are found in sedimentary rocks.

Detailed explanation-5: -A fossil record is a group of fossils which has been analyzed and arranged chronologically and in taxonomic order. Fossils are created when organisms die, are incased in dirt and rock, and are slowly replaced by minerals over time. What is left is a mineral impression of an animal which once existed.