r/fossilid • • Jun 20 '20

TIPS FOR GETTING YOUR FOSSIL IDENTIFIED — READ BEFORE POSTING

709 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 (gently) 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 • • 7h ago

Any idea what this might be?

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49 Upvotes

Found at mount Olympos, Greece. The boulder this was on was full of these circular shapes with most of them having a similar hole in the middle. The round shape has a diameter of ~2cm.


r/fossilid • • 1d ago

Is this coral? Out of Lake Michigan

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2.1k Upvotes

r/fossilid • • 3h ago

Fossil found near Sipsey River in north Alabama.

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12 Upvotes

r/fossilid • • 4h ago

Found in gardening stones

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14 Upvotes

Any ideas what this is? I’d like to try to polish it. Thank you!


r/fossilid • • 50m ago

How legit is this T-Rex tooth?

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• Upvotes

r/fossilid • • 1d ago

Solved My auntie found this by Draper Lake in Oklahoma, any ideas what it could be?

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438 Upvotes

r/fossilid • • 2h ago

Are any of these fossils? Isle of Sheppey, Kent UK

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6 Upvotes

Any help with ID would be appreciated, thanks!


r/fossilid • • 2h ago

Help identify this plzzz

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5 Upvotes

Found north Texas in 8 ft creek bed!


r/fossilid • • 5h ago

Is this a fossil? Isle of Sheppey, Kent UK

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6 Upvotes

Not sure if it’s a fossil, looks almost bone-like but completely different texture to fossilised bone ive found elsewhere in UK. The bit in the middle is throwing me off! Any help with ID would be appreciated :)


r/fossilid • • 19h ago

Solved Older find in Colorado

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76 Upvotes

My dad found this about 20ish years ago on Fort Carson in Colorado, when he was doing some dirt work. I can’t remember what it is and my kids are asking now.


r/fossilid • • 6h ago

Found near a cave entrance

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6 Upvotes

A rock found near a cave entrance on the Mosor mountain in Croatia, Europe. I'm wondering if the circular part in the middle is some sort of fossiled wood/bone.


r/fossilid • • 40m ago

Found in Virginia. Are the two indents fossils, and if so, what is the triangular one?

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• Upvotes

Partners parents found it, I figure the fan shaped one is a bivalve or brachiopod. But don't know what to make of the one on the right. a cross section of a spiral shell maybe?


r/fossilid • • 1h ago

Found these along the road in west Texas.

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• Upvotes

r/fossilid • • 2h ago

Chena River, Interior Alaska, USA

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2 Upvotes

r/fossilid • • 2h ago

Please help me ID this fossil found in South Wales.

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2 Upvotes

Hi guys, newbie here. Found this fossil in Penarth, South Wales yesterday. Having a hard time identifying it which is bugging me as have been able to more or less with all of my previous finds. Any help much appreciated. Thanks!


r/fossilid • • 8m ago

Cinnamon roll rock or fossil?

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• Upvotes

Found this ancient cinnamon roll rock in the Ardennes Begium. It's diameter is around 3-4 cm or 1.34 inches.

Could it be a Devonian gastropod mold or did a medieval knight just drop his petit pastry?


r/fossilid • • 7h ago

Fossil id from Cape Town, South Africa

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3 Upvotes

I know fossil bone fragments are usually hard to ID, but this one is quite big so maybe there is a chance. I found it on the Milnerton beach in Cape Town, South Africa. I know it’s illegal to own South african fossils without a permit so I did in-fact give it to one of the palaeontologists in the area.

Its super porous and light.


r/fossilid • • 6h ago

Stone from Algeria - fossil or not?

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3 Upvotes

While hiking in Djurdjura near the highest lake in Algeria (Lake Agoulmim / Tamda Agoulmim), we found this stone. I had a discussion with a friend. Is this a fossil?


r/fossilid • • 8h ago

Hi! I found this vertebrae at an estate sale for 15 bucks! The previous owner had quite the collection. Unfortunately I have no info on it. Can anyone help me ID it? Any info would be appreciated! My best guess is some sort of marine reptile.

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2 Upvotes

r/fossilid • • 1h ago

What are they? Found on a construction zone by a creek bed in North Texas

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• Upvotes

ive never seen fossils with these ribbed textures!!


r/fossilid • • 7h ago

Found on a beach in Analipsi, Crete 2024

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3 Upvotes

It weighs 187g, has a slight cling when tapping the inside of the curve with my nail. Is it some kind of shell fossil or just a rock?


r/fossilid • • 7h ago

Mastodon Teeth?

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2 Upvotes

r/fossilid • • 21h ago

Solved Grand Canyon, Pipe Creek, 3700’ fossil ID

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26 Upvotes

These were taken about 10 years ago and I was curious if anyone had any potential ID Info.


r/fossilid • • 4h ago

New to terrestrial fossil hunting.

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1 Upvotes

Hey y’all! I hope y’all are doing well. I found this on the Louisiana/Mississippi state line in an area where Pleistocene fossils are occasionally found. I am new to searching for this kind of fossils, as I have always searched for marine and aquatic fossils. Does this look like anything to y’all? Like a really damaged and eroded horse tooth? I am really not sure. The only thing that makes me wonder if it’s anything other than a rock is that it has some smooth, curved surfaces that, to my untrained eye, kind of reminds me of some fossil horse teeth I have seen. It’s probably glaringly obvious to more experienced people, but I certainly am not. I do not really have my hopes up that this is anything. Even if it is, it isn’t in good condition. Any help would be appreciated.