FAQ3

Date: 07-Oct-98

Where can fossils be found in Indiana?

IMPORTANT: You should seek permission from the Indiana Department of Transportation and from the Indiana State Police or local county sheriff's office to collect along road cuts. If you do collect along road cuts, be sure that you and your vehicle are well off the road and do not pose a traffic hazard. Collecting on private property requires permission from the owner. Collecting at state parks is strictly prohibited, but limited collecting may be possible at some state or federally owned or managed properties if you have obtained permission or a permit. For information about collecting in the Hoosier National Forest, go to the forest's Web site, send an e-mail message, or call 812-275-5987. For information about collecting at state forests or reservoirs, contact the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.

Most Indiana fossils are part of the bedrock that underlies the state. They can be found in areas where the bedrock is exposed, such as in quarries, stream banks, and road cuts. Because the bedrock in most of the northern half of Indiana is covered by as much as 400 feet of rock material that was deposited by glaciers, fossils are not common there. The best places to look there are along the banks of deeply eroded stream beds where fossils may be part of the glacial material, or in some areas part of exposed bedrock. Because glaciers did not cover a large portion of southern Indiana, there are many bedrock exposures there that contain fossils.

John Hill