Backyard Challenge: Finding Fossils

Have you ever gone fossil hunting only to think what you’ve found may be a rock? Take a closer look – many fossils you can find in Cincinnati are stuck together on limestone rocks.

You can also find fossils aplenty at Sharon Woods. If you take a walk along the Gorge Trail, you’ll see alternating layers of shale and limestone rock. These rocks are filled with fossils from the Ordovician Period, a geologic period about 450 million years ago when a sea covered all of Ohio.

Use the guide below to see what fossils you can find on your next park visit.

Sharon Woods is home to fossil-filled rocks from the Ordovician Period.

Want more nature education fun that you can do at home? Click here for all of our backyard challenges.