FOSSILS SPECIMEN: SIRENIA

Fossils are defined as any evidence of prehistoric life. There are two types of fossils: Body Fossils include remains of skeletal bones, shell, carapace, test, and teeth. Trace Fossils are clues the organism existed such as foot prints, tracks, burrows and coprolites (fossil dung).

Sirenia are more commonly known as sirenians or “sea cows“, although they are more closely related to elephants. Members of Sirenia are part of an order of exclusively aquatic herbivorous mammals. They first appeared in the Eocene Epoch some 50 million years ago. To see my Sirenia models click here.

Kingdom: Animalia – Phylum: Chordata – Class: Mammalia – Order: Sirenia

(sea-cows, dugongs and sirenians)

Lower Eocene to Holocene

Sea-cow Rib Fragment

Cenozoic

Florida