Skip to main content

Story: Fossils

Three types of fossil

Image
Three types of fossil

The fossil bone (right) is the right humerus of a turtle from the Chatham Islands. The shell (centre) is a cast made by pouring plaster of Paris into an imprint formed by the shell of the bivalve mollusc Inoceramus galoi found near Kāwhia Harbour. The worm-like impression (top left) is called a trace fossil, as it shows traces left by a worm burrowing through mud.

These fossils are part of the GNS Science National Paleontological Collection.

Using this item

GNS Science

by Alastair McLean

Permission of GNS Science must be obtained before any use of this image.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page

Hamish Campbell, Fossils – What are fossils?, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/9020/three-types-of-fossil (accessed 5 June 2026).

Story by Hamish Campbell, published 2 March 2009.

Comments

Gina
26 August 2022
I have a large follik of a oyster which was found in the 1950's in Huntly coal mine. I wonder about it's age. It;s about the size of a large mans hand.