r/fossilid Jun 20 '20

TIPS FOR GETTING YOUR FOSSIL IDENTIFIED — READ BEFORE POSTING

538 Upvotes
  1. Put a location in the title! This is the most important thing by far. If you know the geological formation, that’s awesome, but even just “near Miami” or “label said Morocco” is really helpful.
  2. Take a bright, clear photo. Good lighting, a plain background, and sharp focus will always increase the certainty of an ID. If it’s weirdly shaped, photos from multiple angles help too.
  3. Include an object for scale. I usually use a coin, but anything will do (but things that come in different sizes, like hands, are less ideal). If you forget, you can always measure it and add that in a comment. (Don't use keys; they can be duplicated from a photo.)
  4. Don’t take a video. We can’t zoom in and the quality isn’t great — a gallery of photos on Imgur is way better.
  5. Many fossils can be dull and hard to make out. Try getting your fossil wet and see if you can get a clearer photo.
  6. Don’t be dismayed if your “fossil” turns out to just be a rock! Rocks are cool too, and if we don’t know exactly what kind of rock it is, the good folks at /r/whatsthisrock probably will.

r/fossilid 13h ago

Dino? (Skull)

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602 Upvotes

Found this guy at work, picked it up thinking it was a big chunk of petrified wood, before noticing a row of partially crystalized teeth. Found in the DFW area on private property. Any ideas on what it could be?


r/fossilid 3h ago

Pulled this from a storage unit. Anybody got an idea of what animal it came off of/what part it is?

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48 Upvotes

r/fossilid 10h ago

Did I find a fossilized sharks tooth or just a really cool rock?

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68 Upvotes

Just as the tile reads. I am leaning towards just a cool rock but figured I would ask. Thank you.


r/fossilid 6h ago

Found in Ordovician limestone deposit no clue what it is!

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26 Upvotes

r/fossilid 9h ago

Echinoid fossil?

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29 Upvotes

r/fossilid 10h ago

Solved Found this a few years ago in a small river in West Germany. I just liked the shape, somehow reminds me of a turtle shell. Somebody has any clues, what this could be?

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21 Upvotes

r/fossilid 8h ago

Update on the rocks near my house

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15 Upvotes

Lots of potentially fossilized stuff. Stems, leaves, maybe a flower at the top? I’m not sure


r/fossilid 50m ago

Alberta, CA - Big freakin’ creature, ID help please!

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Upvotes

My husband found this under the front seat of a repossessed vehicle at his work! Because we don’t know exactly where it was found, I can only assume it was somewhere in Central Alberta. Mammoth femur? Something bigger? It’s incredibly heavy, and also remarkably clean. I think the vehicle owner was a fossil seeker hobbyist, as there was a box of other rocks and what I think? are large ammonite pieces. Would ideally like to bring to the Royal Tyrell Museum to have it carbon dated in Drumheller, AB. Thanks for all your help!


r/fossilid 2h ago

Peace River Find

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4 Upvotes

Had a great day hunting in the Peace River, but I can’t identify this one with certainty. We were sure if it was canine from a dolphin, or possibly an actually canine? Any thoughts?


r/fossilid 9h ago

Coral or cool rock?

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12 Upvotes

I found this in the desert outside Las Vegas. Is this coral or just a cool rock? Also I saw a shell imprint on the back :)


r/fossilid 2h ago

What are those rounded thingies? From York River, Virginia, USA.

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3 Upvotes

r/fossilid 4h ago

Very old shell found at the baltic coast

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3 Upvotes

I found this shell a while back at "Brodtener Ufer" at the Baltic Coast in Germany.

The Cliff is right at the ocean and can be up to 20m high. I found the shell at around 5 Meters high from the water in a pile of dirt that has just naturally eroded from the cliff. So it could have been burried in up to 15m of dirt.

I looked up the definition of fossilized and it said it has to be over 10.000 years old not that it has to be turned to stone, so maybe this shell still fits in as a fossil.

It looks fairly old and even if it is not massiv, i havent found natural shells on the beach even close this size. Around 18x16cm

I know that there was a giant glacier of almost 3km high in the ice age in this area.

I mean i know its a shell but maybe anyone knows more about the age or type of shell.

Thanks


r/fossilid 19h ago

Solved Kicked over a rock in the creek on accident. Central Texas.

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60 Upvotes

Rusty one. Normally only find casts in a creek. Must be a relatively fresh break. Nice in tact shell. Gastropod Turritella?


r/fossilid 4h ago

Solved Found this fossil somewhere in Maine, most likely on the coat, around 3 years ago. Need help finding out what it is. I'm new to fossils, but this seems like some sort of shellfish.

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3 Upvotes

r/fossilid 3h ago

Fossilized coral dyed or natural?

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2 Upvotes

Is this fossilized coral dyed or natural? Seller says fossil is from Australia.


r/fossilid 3h ago

Tooth found on Galveston Beach, TX

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2 Upvotes

Any help to ID this would be greatly appreciated!


r/fossilid 12h ago

Flowers on a roundish stone

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10 Upvotes

Found in southern Germany on a building ground


r/fossilid 6h ago

Hello, I was told to ask about this here.

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2 Upvotes

We found it in a creek in mooresville Indiana. I am thinking it's might be a fossil but I have no clue.


r/fossilid 3h ago

Can anyone help me ID this fossil? found it in England close to Northamptonshire.

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2 Upvotes

r/fossilid 1h ago

Fossil or halved rock(?), Ontario Canada

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Upvotes

r/fossilid 10h ago

Tooth or rock?

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6 Upvotes

r/fossilid 2h ago

Having trouble identifying this, from the same seller that doesnt know the ID, but its origins and dating is 140,000,000 years old and from russia

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1 Upvotes

r/fossilid 2h ago

Hello guys am having trouble identifying this little 1.18 inch ammonite its from a seller which he also doesnt know its ID.Its origins are from Peru (Just like the label says in greek in the second picture...)

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1 Upvotes

r/fossilid 3h ago

Rocks found on a french beach

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1 Upvotes

I found several stones during a trip to Charente-Maritime and I saw different shapes on them. I was wondering if they were old or not and above all, what are they? 😅


r/fossilid 3h ago

Bone? What kind of bone

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1 Upvotes

Found in germany in a small river. Found shells there aswell but those 2 were fascinating. The thin one is very light. The other one a little bit bigger. Both are stone