Paleontology is a science full of mystery — mainly because for as much as fossils tell us about our past, they can’t tell us everything. Even so, paleontologists attempt to learn about living things such as plants and animals that existed billions of years ago using fossils.
Fossils are the remains or traces of animals or plants from millions of years ago, preserved as rock, and can include everything from bones, teeth, and shells to footprints. When pieced together, these things paint a picture of how the planet and different species have evolved over time and how they are related to one another. Paleontologists studying fossils are looking to determine three main things: the identity and origin of the fossil, the fossil’s environment, and what a particular fossil can tell us about the history of the earth.
1676 — A huge thigh bone is discovered in England by Reverend Plot. At the time, this was assumed to be from a “giant” but was likely from a dinosaur.
1787 — The first dinosaur fossil in the United States, a thigh bone, is discovered by Dr. Caspar Wistar in Gloucester County, New Jersey.
1838 — The first nearly complete dinosaur skeleton is discovered on the John E. Hopkins Farm in Haddonfield, New Jersey, by William Parker Foulke.
1854 — The first dinosaur models, life-size and made of concrete, are created by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins in England.
While paleontologists have found thousands of fossils across the world, the reality is, most fossils may never be found. Some fossils may be buried too deep, while others have probably been destroyed over time by heat and pressure from the earth itself. Still, plenty of fossils have been found, and new ones are being discovered all the time. Each year, paleontologists continue to use these discoveries to piece together the stories of the past.