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"Fossils" Pages = California - Florida - Fossil ID - Come Visit Us - Buy Fossils |
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Where can I find Fossils? |
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Pro - Fossils that are found may be in very good condition. |
Con - Because of strict insurance policies, access to the site will likely be restricted by the company doing the work. |
Pro - If you CAN obtain permission to fossil hunt there, you will likely have little competition. |
Con - Without a water source, sifting through the debris is more difficult. |
Pro - The fossils you find may have desirable light colors, including whites, tans and even green. |
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Pro - Access is relatively easy, but that means... |
Con - You have a lot of competition from other beach combers, especially the experienced ones, who know to look after storms. |
Pro - If you like sea shells, they can be found at the same time. |
Con - Because the fossils are washed back and forth in the surf, they are often broken and worn. |
Pro - If you're a social person, you'll enjoy meeting people and answering questions about what you're looking for. |
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Pro - Plenty of moving water provides an easy way to separate the fossils from the sand (using special equipment). |
Con - When the water level is too high, access to the best fossil hunting spots is limited (unless you can dive). |
Pro - You can find concentrated fossil deposits, due to the action of the river and the work of Phosphate miners who dredged the rivers a century ago. They separated the sand from debris, then sorting out the Phosphate. The remaining debris, which included fossils, was discarded back into the river. Pockets of this debris can be found. |
Con - Though animals are seldom a problem, the rivers are home to alligators and poisonous snakes. Be smart - be safe. |
Pro - You'll have the chance to see many species of plants, birds and perhaps even reptiles and mammals. |
There are fossils approximately
5-15 feet below the surface almost anywhere you walk in our part of Florida. The
reason is explained in the answer to the first question (above). The trick is simply to find places where that
5-15 foot depth is exposed. One place to find fossils is where
someone is mining, or digging a trench or canal, or working on a construction project.
You will likely find fossils in the piled-up debris (the "spoil") that was removed from the
excavation. Another place to find fossils
is at the beach (especially west central Florida). They are washed onto
the beach by the surf, from fossil deposits that are off-shore (and
approximately 5-15 feet below the surface). The place I prefer to hunt
fossils is in the rivers of southwest Florida. As they course through the
landscape, rivers cut out the banks. After a
period of flooding, you'll see just how powerful the river is, moving LARGE amounts
of sand and debris. Every year the river changes, sometimes
dramatically, always washing new fossils into the river bed. Below are the
pros and cons of each location.