Coleman Poster, Junior
The world has been around for a long time, and fossils might be the key to figuring out the true past of our many ancestors. National Fossil Day is celebrated every October on the 13th, and has been celebrated for 12 years.
Fossils are the remains of deceased creatures from our expansive history, usually found in the ground and preserved for millions of years, without any flesh remaining. From the earliest of life forms, such as the dinosaurs to more recent creatures like the woolly mammoth and saber tooth cat, there have been many creatures that came before us.
The first fossil to be discovered was that of the megalosaurus, a medium-large sized theropod that roamed the jungles of the jurassic period. The discoverer of the fossil was a man named William Buckland, a fossil hunter from Britain. He found the fossil in 1819 and named it five years later.
Today, 900 species of dinosaurs alone have been found. There might be more that we just haven't dug up yet. Some examples of dinosaurs are the tyrannosaurus rex, the largest theropod with the strongest bite of any animal, which lived during the late Cretaceous period. On the opposite side of dinosaurs, coelophysis was one of the first dinosaurs to walk the earth, emerging in the early Triassic period as a small scavenger. Four billion species have come into existence, but less than one percent of them still exist now. The thing is, not all fossils are from animals, plants have been fossilized as well!
Like animal fossils, plant fossils are preserved deep in the ground. The difference between animal and plant fossils is that the plant is mostly intact, just dried up. Animal fossils lose any sort of skin or muscle when fossilized, but not for plants. The oldest plant fossil was called cooksonia, which was the first terrestrial plant. Another plant fossil is the glossopteris, one of the most well known plant fossils. The glossopteris was a swamp dwelling tree during the Carboniferous period and it along with other glossopteridales was classified as a seed fern.
Life is an important part of the world we live in; everything has a role. Bees make honey and allow plants to grow. Dogs are both great hunters and companions. Horses were our main form of long distance travel for most of our history! Even things like parasites and other insects have a purpose as a food source for other animals. Flowers can be used as medicine or a simple gift, trees can be harvested for wood or fruits, and grass can be used as food for many animals. All these organisms have made an impact on our lives, and we must protect and cherish them. If we don’t… we might end up like fossils, lost artifacts of history.
Some ways people like to celebrate Fossil Day are by taking class trips to museums and historical sites, along with just doing simple classroom lessons or outdoor activities. These are only a few of the ways to celebrate Fossil Day, perhaps try something new to celebrate the history of life. Also don’t wait too long, you might not be around much longer. That goes for all living things.
Source:
https://www.nps.gov/subjects/fossilday/index.htm
Comments