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L.S., Fossils form via various processes, such as permineralisation or petrifaction. These can all be considered a pseudomorphic replacement of the original matter by one or more mineral phases. Under "normal" taphonomic conditions, common fossil-forming compounds are silica (silicification) and calcium carbonates. In principle, however, fossilisation could involve various other minerals, given a right, yet more unusual set of circumstances. Pyritisation is a better-known example. There are much more exotic mineralisations still, which are interesting from both a palaeontological and a mineralogical point of view. Below, I'll list a few that I know of... Do you have more examples? Please share your knowledge and/or specimens! Tim 1. Analcime, heulandite and stilbite replacement in shells from the Oligocene-Miocene of Eugene, Oregon, USA 2. Barite replacement in shells and pine cones of the Lower Meeresand Fm. (Oligocene) near Steinhardt, Germany 3. Fluorite petrifaction in wood from the Leukersdorf Fm. (lower Permian) of Chemnitz, Germany 4. Heulandite and stilbite replacement in fossil wood of the Denver Fm. (Cretaceous-Paleogene) near Golden, Colorado, USA 5. Natrolite replacement/petrifaction in wood from the Miocene of Mt. Elgon, Uganda 6. Vivianite replacement in bivalves and gastropods from the Kerch iron-ore deposits (?Pliocene) on Crimea, Ukraine

I posted a couple things here in another thread. I thought it would be good to have 'one-stop shopping' for this fascinating subject. So what is taphonomy? It is the study of the processes (as burial, decay, and preservation) that affect animal and plant remains as they become fossilized. It can be used to discern the paleoecology of the organisms as well as the sedimentary processes that led to their preservation.

Bias in the fossil record (The fossil record has its limitations, but by understanding them we can best interpret the data we do have) by Dave Hone, The Guardian, August 17, 2012 http://www.guardian....d?newsfeed=true Best wishes, Paul H.

Improbable research: the vertical fossil and the exploding dinosaur theory, Marc Abrahams, Guardian, Feb. 13, 2012 http://www.guardian....ossil-exploding http://www.improbabl...guardian-col-6/ The paper is: Reisdorf, A. G., R. Bux, D. Wyler, M. Benecke, C. Klug, M. W. Maisch, P. Fornaro, and A. Wetzel, 2012, Float, explode or sink: postmortem fate of lung-breathing marine vertebrates. Paleobiodiversity and Paleoenvironments. Published online http://www.springerl...2610xv7h737814/ Achim Reisdorf - http://pages.unibas....isdorftitel.htm Also look at: Martill, D. M., 1993, Soupy Substrates: A Medium for the Exceptional Preservation of Ichthyosaurs of the Posidonia Shale (Lower Jurassic) of Germany; Kaupia . Darmstädter Beiträge zur Naturgeschichte. vol. 2, pp. 77-97 Wetzel, A., and A. G. Reisdorf, 2007, Ichnofabrics elucidate the accumulation history of a condensed interval containing a vertically emplaced ichthyosaur skull. – In: Bromley et al. (eds): pp. 241-251. Ichnology at the Crossroads: A Multidimensional Approach to the Science of Organism- Substrate Interactions, SEPM Special Publication no. 88:. Society for Sedimentary Geology, Tulsa, Oklahoma. Best wishes, Paul H.

Prehistoric Lobsters Made Homes of Ancient Ammonoid Shells by Brian Switek, Wired.com, March 12, 2012 http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/03/prehistoric-lobsters-made-homes-of-ancient-ammonoid-shells/ This fossil shows lobsters knew how to cuddle msnbc.com ‎http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46721831/ns/technology_and_science-science/ The paper is: Klompmaker, A., and R. Fraaije, 2012, Animal Behavior Frozen in Time: Gregarious Behavior of Early Jurassic Lobsters within an Ammonoid Body Chamber. PLoS ONE. vol. 7, no. 3. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0031893 http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0031893 best wishes, Paul H.