what do paleontologists study

Paleontologists study the history of life on Earth as based on fossils. Fossils are the remains of plants, animals, fungi, bacteria, and single-celled living things that have been replaced by rock material or impressions of organisms preserved in rock. Paleontologists use fossil remains to understand different aspects of extinct and living organisms. Individual fossils may contain information about an organism’s life and environment. Paleontology combines biology and geology, and paleontologists need a broad scientific training. Paleontologists can specialize in different areas, such as vertebrate paleontology, invertebrate paleontology, and paleobotany. Vertebrate paleontologists have discovered and reconstructed the skeletons of dinosaurs, turtles, cats, and many other animals to show how they lived and their evolutionary history. Invertebrate paleontologists study fossils of animals without backbones, such as corals and shellfish. Paleobotanists study the fossils of ancient plants. Paleontologists work in universities, museums, and government agencies. They spend a lot of time in the field to collect the fossils that they study. Paleontology requires a broad scientific training, and most paleontologists complete a Ph.D. .