Microfossils

Microfossils are very small fossils, such as microscopic algal cysts and dormant fungal spores, which can be found in rocks, sediments, and soils. They have helped to shape our understanding of the history of life and have been used as key indicators in several areas of Earth Sciences, such as paleoclimatology, paleoecology, etc. Microfossils have also been utilized to reconstruct ancient environments, trace the evolutionary history of a species and understand changes in the diversity of life through time. Furthermore, they have been used to identify and characterize deposits of mineral resources, and to understand the biochemistry of ancient organisms.