BUREAU OF ECONOMIC GEOLOGY
The University of Texas at Austin
Austin, Texas 78712
John T. Lonsdale, Director
Guidebook 2
TEXAS FOSSILS:
An Amateur Collector’s Handbook
By
William H. Matthews III
November 1960
Second Printing, July 1963
Third Printing, August 1967
Fourth Printing, June 1971
Fifth Printing, November 1973
Sixth Printing, April 1976
Seventh Printing, November 1978
Eighth Printing, September 1981
Ninth Printing, August 1984
Contents
Page [Introduction] 1 [What are fossils?] 3 [The study of fossils] 4 [Paleobotany] 4 [Invertebrate paleontology] 4 [Vertebrate paleontology] 4 [Micropaleontology] 4 [Preservation of fossils] 5 [Requirements of fossilization] 5 [Missing pages in the record] 5 [Different kinds of fossil preservation] 7 [Original soft parts of organisms] 7 [Original hard parts of organisms] 7 [Calcareous remains] 10 [Phosphatic remains] 10 [Siliceous remains] 10 [Chitinous remains] 10 [Altered hard parts of organisms] 10 [Carbonization] 10 [Petrifaction or permineralization] 10 [Replacement or mineralization] 10 [Replacement by calcareous material] 11 [Replacement by siliceous material] 11 [Replacement by iron compounds] 11 [Traces of organisms] 11 [Molds and casts] 11 [Tracks, trails, and burrows] 14 [Coprolites] 14 [Gastroliths] 14 [Pseudofossils] 14 [Dendrites] 14 [Slickensides] 16 [Concretions] 16 [Where and how to collect fossils] 17 [Collecting equipment] 17 [Where to look] 19 [How to collect] 20 [Cleaning and preparation of fossils] 21 [How fossils are named] 21 [The science of classification] 21 [The units of classification] 22 [Identification of fossils] 23 [Use of identification keys] 23 [Identification key to main types of invertebrate fossils] 26 [List of Texas colleges offering geology courses] 27 [Cataloging the collection] 31 [How fossils are used] 31 [Geologic history] 33 [Geologic column and time scale] 33 [The geology of Texas] 34 [Physiography] 35 [Trans-Pecos region] 35 [Texas Plains] 35 [High Plains] 35 [North-central Plains] 37 [Edwards Plateau] 37 [Grand Prairie] 37 [Llano uplift] 37 [Gulf Coastal Plain] 37 [Geology] 37 [Precambrian rocks] 40 [Paleozoic rocks] 40 [Cambrian] 40 [Ordovician] 40 [Silurian] 40 [Devonian] 40 [Mississippian] 41 [Pennsylvanian] 41 [Permian] 41 [Mesozoic rocks] 42 [Triassic] 42 [Jurassic] 42 [Cretaceous] 42 [Cenozoic rocks] 43 [Tertiary] 43 [Quaternary] 43 [Main types of fossils] 44 [Plant fossils] 44 [Classification of the plant kingdom] 44 [Division Thallophyta] 44 [Division Bryophyta] 44 [Division Tracheophyta] 44 [Animal fossils] 48 [Phylum Protozoa] 48 [Class Sarcodina] 48 [Order Foraminifera] 48 [Order Radiolaria] 48 [Phylum Porifera] 49 [Phylum Coelenterata] 49 [Class Anthozoa] 49 [Subclass Zoantharia] 50 [Order Rugosa] 50 [Order Scleractinia] 50 [Order Tabulata] 50 [Phylum Bryozoa] 50 [Phylum Brachiopoda] 54 [Class Inarticulata] 54 [Class Articulata] 56 [Phylum Mollusca] 56 [Class Gastropoda] 59 [Class Pelecypoda] 59 [Class Cephalopoda] 66 [Subclass Nautiloidea] 66 [Subclass Ammonoidea] 75 [Subclass Coleoidea] 78 [Order Belemnoidea] 78 [Phylum Annelida] 78 [Phylum Arthropoda] 78 [Subphylum Trilobitomorpha] 78 [Class Trilobita] 78 [Subphylum Crustacea] 80 [Class Ostracoda] 80 [Phylum Echinodermata] 80 [Subphylum Pelmatozoa] 81 [Class Cystoidea] 81 [Class Blastoidea] 81 [Class Crinoidea] 81 [Subphylum Eleutherozoa] 82 [Class Asterozoa] 82 [Subclass Asteroidea] 82 [Subclass Ophiuroidea] 82 [Class Echinozoa] 82 [Subclass Echinoidea] 82 [Subclass Holothuroidea] 85 [Phylum Chordata] 85 [Subphylum Hemichordata] 85 [Class Graptolithina] 85 [Subphylum Vertebrata] 86 [Superclass Pisces] 87 [Class Agnatha] 87 [Class Placodermi] 87 [Class Chondrichthyes] 87 [Class Osteichthyes] 87 [Superclass Tetrapoda] 89 [Class Amphibia] 89 [Class Reptilia] 89 [Cotylosaurs] 89 [Turtles] 89 [Pelycosaurs] 89 [Therapsids] 89 [Ichthyosaurs] 95 [Mosasaurs] 95 [Plesiosaurs] 95 [Phytosaurs] 95 [Crocodiles and alligators] 95 [Pterosaurs] 95 [Dinosaurs] 95 [Order Saurischia] 97 [Suborder Theropoda] 97 [Suborder Sauropoda] 97 [Order Ornithischia] 97 [Suborder Ornithopoda] 97 [Suborder Stegosauria] 97 [Suborder Ankylosauria] 97 [Suborder Ceratopsia] 100 [Class Aves] 100 [Class Mammalia] 100 [Subclass Allotheria] 100 [Subclass Theria] 100 [Order Edentata] 100 [Order Carnivora] 102 [Order Pantodonta] 102 [Order Dinocerata] 102 [Order Proboscidea] 102 [Order Perissodactyla] 104 [Horses] 104 [Titanotheres] 104 [Chalicotheres] 106 [Rhinoceroses] 106 [Order Artiodactyla] 106 [Entelodonts] 106 [Camels] 106 [Books about fossils] 108 [General works] 108 [Nontechnical and juvenile] 108 [Collecting helps] 108 [Reference works] 109 [Selected references on Texas fossils] 109 [Glossary] 111 [Index] 115