Fossil hunting is a captivating pursuit that blends outdoor adventure with scientific discovery. While often romanticized as a matter of luck, successfully unearthing ancient remains depends heavily on precision and preparedness. This demanding work requires a specialized toolkit, where each instrument plays a specific role in locating, extracting, and preserving fragile fossils with scientific accuracy. These tools ensure discoveries contribute meaningfully to our understanding of Earth’s past.
Essential Tools for Initial Discovery
The initial phase of fossil hunting involves locating potential sites and beginning the excavation process. Geological hammers are fundamental for this stage, often featuring a flat square head on one end and a pick or chisel on the other. A pick end helps dig between rocks and break up terrain, while a chisel end is useful for splitting softer rocks like shale along natural planes.
Rock chisels work in conjunction with hammers, allowing for more precise removal of surrounding rock once a potential fossil is spotted. Wider chisels are effective for splitting larger rocks, while smaller ones are used for finer work around the fossil. Shovels and picks are also employed to clear away larger quantities of overburden, which is the material covering the fossil-bearing layer. Brushes, ranging in size, are then used to carefully sweep away loose sediment, preventing damage to the exposed fossil.
Tools for Careful Extraction and Preservation
Once a fossil begins to emerge from the surrounding rock, the focus shifts to more delicate extraction and immediate preservation. Dental picks are instrumental for meticulously removing small amounts of matrix directly adjacent to the fossil. These sharp, precise tools allow for detailed work, especially around fragile structures like bones or intricate invertebrate remains. Small brushes continue to be used at this stage for gentle cleaning, revealing more of the specimen’s features.
Consolidants, specialized glues or resins, are applied to stabilize fragile fossils in the field. Polyvinyl acetate (PVA) or acrylic resins like Paraloid B72 are commonly used to harden poorly mineralized bone or porous specimens, preventing crumbling.
For larger, more robust fossils, a protective casing known as a “field jacket” is created using plaster and burlap. The fossil is first covered with a barrier layer like aluminum foil to prevent the plaster from adhering directly, then strips of plaster-soaked burlap are applied to form a rigid shell that protects the specimen during transport to a laboratory.
Documentation and Site Management Tools
Beyond the physical excavation and preservation of fossils, accurate documentation is important for their scientific value. GPS devices are used for precisely recording the geographic coordinates of a find, allowing researchers to revisit sites and integrate discoveries into larger geological maps.
Cameras are used to capture visual records of the fossil in situ before removal, showing its orientation and relationship to the surrounding rock layers. Measuring tapes provide data on the fossil’s dimensions and its depth or position within the stratigraphic column. Notebooks and pencils are used for recording detailed observations, sketches, and all relevant data, including the date, rock formation, and any associated findings.