The Latin word 'fossil' means 'belonging to the past' or 'buried'. Fossils are the underground remnants of living organisms that existed much earlier. They are formed when a dead plant or animal is preserved instead of getting decomposed. This usually happens when the carcass of an animal falls into a swamp or gets covered with sand and dust and oxygen is unable to reach the body of the animal and decompose it. In this condition, body parts, such as shells, bones, scales, and sometimes hairs, get preserved. Even traces or heaps of dung can be preserved as fossils.
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