How to Choose a Field Guide for Fossils

You can study the earth's history by locating and identifying fossils in your area.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Look for a guide with easy-to-read information.

2. Choose a guide with clear photos or drawings and handy references for each picture, such as the "National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Fossils" or the "Familiar Fossils of North America."

3. Study the information and decide whether it meets your needs. For the beginner, a guide with information about how to extract and preserve the fossil would be beneficial.

4. Check out the guide's size and durability. A small field guide such as the 4-by-6-inch "Golden Guide to Fossils" will fit in a pocket or backpack.

5. Decide if you want a field guide for a certain era, species or location, or a combination.

6. Match the guide to the fossil hunter's level of experience - a book with lots of how-to information for the beginner; a guide with information on the rare or hard-to-find fossils for the advanced collector.

7. Give the book "Fossils Tell of Long Ago" to young fossil hunters to help them understand the how, when, where and why of the formation of fossils.

Tips & Warnings

• "Fossil Hunt With Real Fossils" by Uncle Milton is for 9- to 12-year-olds and includes a Golden Guide, tools to dig fossils, and even a few fossils in real dirt to initiate the young paleontologist in your family.