Why Fossils?

In researching the content for this web site, many

 personal contacts made their way into my life.

One of these was Sheryl Todd whose web site

about Tapirs prompted this new Category.

Tapirs no longer exist in this country,

except in Zoos, but surprisingly,

Florida is the number one source

of Tapir Fossils in the world.

If you are wondering what all of this has to do

with the Endangered Wildlife of Florida, I will

make this very weak case for my departure.

Tapirs were once quite abundant here

and are now extinct.

If we are not extremely vigilant, there will be many

more plants and wildlife now alive in Florida, that

will soon join the Tapir and become extinct as well.

So, in honor of Sheryl and the Tapirs that she loves,

I will offer this humble page about the very First

Animals of Florida, who have now become our Fossils.

Florida's Fossils

To begin: what is a Fossil?

A Fossil is the remnant of a living thing that has died

 and become encapsulated in or part of another life form.

Amber is a protective resin (a liquid within a plant) that often

captures other life forms on it way to becoming a Fossil.

A Fossil can also be formed under pressure,

like those that become imbedded in rock.

A Fossil can be either a plant or an animal.

Many of Florida's Fossils were Giant versions of

some of the species that are still here today:

Alligators, Armadillos, Bison, Camels, Crocodiles, Deer,

Elephants, Horses, Jaguars, Mammoths, Mastodons,

Rhinos, Saber Tooth Cats, Sharks, Sloths, Tapirs,

Tortoises and a flightless bird named Titanis Walleri.

Any journey into the world of Florida's Fossils should

 begin at the Museum of Natural History in Gainesville.

The University's Paleontologists and the impressive collection

 they have amassed in a very short time have made

 the Museum the pride of "the Gator Nation."

They have 500 specimens on display and as the say,

"90% of them are real and many were found

within 100 miles of the Museum."