Glossary Category: Paleoenvironments

Paleoenvironments describe the ancient environmental conditions in which organisms lived and were preserved. By analyzing sedimentology, fossil assemblages, and geochemical data, scientists reconstruct whether a setting was marine, freshwater, coastal, desert, or terrestrial floodplain.

This category examines the geological and ecological frameworks that shaped fossil preservation, providing context for interpreting ancient ecosystems and evolutionary change.

The Western Interior Seaway was a shallow inland sea that divided North America during much of the Cretaceous Period.