Why are fossils found in sedimentary rock?

Answer 1

Fossils are the impression or trace of a living animal or plant, usually in the type of sediment they lived in or nearby. You would not find an animal or plant living in a molten lava flow or inside a working volcano so you don't find their fossils there.

Answer 2

Sedimentary rocks can contain fossils because, unlike most igneous and metamorphic rocks, they form at temperatures and pressures that do not destroy fossil remains. Dead organisms can become sediments which may, under the right conditions, become sedimentary rock.

Igneous rock forms from magma; no chance for fossils to form there. Metamorphic rocks are other rock types that are changed by heat and pressure; their transformation and mineral reorganization causes very few fossils to be found there. Sedimentary rock can be formed from the accumulation of sediments and are often formed near ancient shores, basins, and lake beds. If an organism dies and is covered by sediments before being rotted or eaten by predatory organisms, it could eventually become part of the sedimentary layer that becomes rock.

Answer 3

Sedimentary rocks can contain fossils because, unlike most igneous and metamorphic rocks, they form at temperatures and pressures that do not destroy fossil remains. Dead organisms can become sediments which may, under the right conditions, become sedimentary rock.

Igneous rock forms from magma; no chance for fossils to form there. Metamorphic rocks are other rock types that are changed by heat and pressure; their transformation and mineral reorganization causes very few fossils to be found there. Sedimentary rock can be formed from the accumulation of sediments and are often formed near ancient shores, basins, and lake beds. If an organism dies and is covered by sediments before being rotted or eaten by predatory organisms, it could eventually become part of the sedimentary layer that becomes rock.

Answer 4

Fossils are found in sedimentary rock because sedimentary rocks form from the accumulation of sediment, which can bury and preserve the remains of organisms. Over time, the buried remains can undergo mineralization and turn into fossils within the sedimentary rock.