Corals
What was it?
Corals today and in the geological past are animals that live in the sea, usually when it’s shallow and rocky. Sometimes they live in colonies and sometimes as individuals. They have been around for a long time. They make a skeleton out of calcium carbonate and live in it with their tentacles sticking out so they can feed.
How old is it?
The fossils of crinoids we find in Northumberland are from the Carboniferous period, so around 330 million years old. But corals go back much further to the Cambrian period 500 million years ago.
Where did it live?
In fairly shallow seas. Their base was attached to a rocky sea bottom. We can use their fossils as proof that the area where they are now found was once under the sea and that the sea was shallow.
Where are the fossils found?
They are usually found fossilized in limestone. Good places to look are rocky foreshores along the coast, or in old quarries where there are broken rocks lying around.
Are these animals still alive today?
They are and like in the past they form reefs – especially in warm seas close to the tropics.