Read the latest positive news, breakthroughs, and inspiring stories about fossil discovery, curated daily by BrightWire.
A couple spotted dark shapes on a secluded Dorset beach and uncovered a 33-foot ichthyosaur that rewrites what scientists knew about ancient ocean survivors. The stunning fossil now stars in its own museum exhibition, bringing millions of years of ocean history to life.
A newly discovered ancient whale species from Japan shows exactly how these marine giants evolved from shallow-water hunters into the deep-diving champions we know today. The 15.5-million-year-old fossils reveal a creature caught in the middle of an incredible transformation.
A young fossil hunter's sharp eyes spotted something paleontologists hadn't seen in Nebraska for more than half a century. Leo Youngdahl's discovery of a rare jellyfish-like creature is inspiring others to explore the ancient world beneath their feet.
A dinosaur fossil that sat forgotten in a museum drawer for a century has been identified as an entirely new species. The human-sized predator roamed England 120 million years ago.
A Florida diver thought he'd discovered driftwood on the ocean floor until he brushed away the sand and revealed a 70-pound prehistoric treasure. The 4-foot mastodon tusk is the largest intact piece ever found in the area's rich fossil beds.
A young fossil hunter flipped over a rock at a Nebraska park and discovered a marine creature that hadn't been seen in the state for more than half a century. His curiosity just rewrote a tiny piece of paleontological history.
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A curious first-grader turned over a rock at a Nebraska park and discovered a jellyfish-like creature from 200 million years ago that hadn't been found in the state since the 1960s. His sharp eyes and willingness to ask questions led to one of the rarest fossil discoveries in state history.
A young fossil hunter just made the discovery of a lifetime at a Nebraska state park. Leo Youngdahl unearthed a 200-million-year-old jellyfish fossil, the first of its kind found in the state in over 55 years.
A Nebraska boy discovered one of only three conulariid fossils ever found in the state during a summer park event. The ancient jellyfish-like creature lived up to 500 million years ago and rarely fossilizes.
British researchers discovered a new ancient crocodile species with teeth so delicate they could only eat tiny shrimp and fish. The 170-million-year-old fossil reveals how prehistoric crocodiles were far more diverse than we ever imagined.
Scientists discovered a tiny aquatic predator from the Jurassic Period that reveals how mammals developed the ability to safely nurse their young. This breakthrough adaptation eventually made possible the evolution of larger, more complex brains like ours.
Scientists found a 9-million-year-old capybara tooth in Chile's bone-dry Atacama Desert, proving the world's driest place was once green and wet. The discovery rewrites what we know about Earth's dramatic climate transformations.