Exeptional preservation

Exeptional preservation - Soft body parts are preserved

Ideal conditions

• Rapid burial in a protective medium such as soft, fine clay, to protect hard parts from the destructive action of scavengers and the weather.
• Burial in low energy conditions
• lack of oxygen - anaerobic conditions reduce decay no bacteria = no decay
• PH - decay is slowed down in high acidity e.g. in peat swamps 

The incomplete fossil record

The record is biased because soft parts are not usually preserved so there are gaps in the fossil records. Jelly fish, worms and…