Leslie Massey
Australia is home to a plethora of fossils, from large extinct mammals to gigantic sea creatures and dinosaurs. The country has several fossil sites, with some of the world's best-preserved fossils, scattered across Outback Queensland. The Age of Fishes Museum in Canowindra, New South Wales, is one of only two fossil fish museums in the world, while the Eromanga Natural History Museum in Quilpie, Queensland, is home to Australia's oldest dinosaur. The Western Australian Museum also boasts a fossil collection of approximately 1,500,000 specimens, including vertebrate and invertebrate body fossils, plant fossils, stromatolites, and trace fossils.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Age of fossils | 500 million years old to 3.5 billion years old |
| Types of fossils | Fossilized remains of large extinct mammals, gigantic sea creatures, marine reptiles, dinosaurs, plant fossils, invertebrate fossils, vertebrate fossils, stromatolites, trace fossils, etc. |
| Places fossils are found | Western Australia, Lightning Ridge, New South Wales, Queensland, Perth, Carnarvon, Officer Basin, Yilgarn Craton, Kimberley, Southern Carnarvon Basin, Pilbara region, Broome Sandstone, Tumblagooda Sandstone, Kalbarri, Wellington Caves, Murgon, Talbragar, Alcoota Station, Victoria Fossil Cave at Naracoorte, Bluff Downs, Grenfell, etc. |
| Museums | Eromanga Natural History Museum, Australian Age of Dinosaurs, Kronosaurus Korner, Western Australian Museum, Age of Fishes Museum, etc. |
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What You'll Learn
Dinosaur fossils
One of the most famous Australian dinosaurs is the Muttaburrasaurus, a large, plant-eating ornithopod that lived during the Early Cretaceous period, approximately 100 million years ago. The first fossils of Muttaburrasaurus were found near the town of Hughenden in central Queensland, and it was the first dinosaur in Australia to be cast and mounted. Several specimens have been found in central and northern Queensland, and a few teeth have been discovered in New South Wales.
Another notable Australian dinosaur discovery is the Australotitan, a new species of herbivorous titanosaur and the largest known Australian dinosaur to date. Nicknamed "Cooper," this dinosaur lived between 95 and 98 million years ago and would have measured approximately 30 meters in length and 6.5 meters in height. The fossils of Australotitan were found in Queensland in 2005 by Sandy Mackenzie, near his hometown of Eromanga.
In recent years, Australia has experienced a dinosaur boom, with a flurry of discoveries made since the early 2000s. One such discovery is the Banjo, a new species of meat-eating theropod found near Winton, Queensland. Banjo's fossils comprise the most complete non-avian theropod skeleton found in Australia, with almost intact arms, hands, legs, feet, ribs, and parts of the lower jaw. Banjo lived approximately 93 million years ago and, despite its small size, had large, deadly claws.
These recent discoveries of relatively complete dinosaur fossils in Australia are putting the country on the global dinosaur map and opening up new frontiers for research, shedding more light on the unique and diverse range of dinosaurs that once roamed the continent.
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Marine fossils
Other opal fields, such as White Cliffs and Coober Pedy, mainly produce fossils of marine (saltwater) plants and animals. Opalised snails and mussel shells are found on most Australian opal fields, and shark teeth have also been discovered at Lightning Ridge, indicating that the area was once close to the shore.
The fossil record in Australia also provides evidence of a shallow inland sea called the Eromanga Sea, which covered nearly a third of the country during the Cretaceous period. The waters of this sea teemed with fish, invertebrates, and marine reptiles, including plesiosaurs, pliosaurs, and ichthyosaurs.
In addition to opal fields, other notable fossil sites in Australia include the Wellington Caves, which are known for their diversity of fossils, and Murgon, which is the only site in Australia with a diverse vertebrate fauna dating from the early Tertiary Period, approximately 55 million years ago. Bluff Downs is recognised as one of the most significant fossil sites of Pliocene age in Australia, and the Grenfell fossil fauna represents the youngest Devonian locality in New South Wales.
Australia has also yielded fossils of ancient marine reptiles, including elasmosaurs and pterosaurs. In 2021, a former avocado farmer discovered the most complete pterosaur skeleton ever found in Australia, representing a previously unknown species named Haliskia peterseni. This discovery provides a glimpse into an ancient ecosystem where pterosaurs coexisted with massive marine reptiles.
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Megafauna fossils
Australia is home to the fossilized remains of large extinct mammals, gigantic sea creatures, and different species of dinosaurs. The country's fossil record is extensive, with fossils found across the country, including in the states of Queensland, Western Australia, and New South Wales.
The Australian Museum holds a large collection of megafauna fossils, including the Diprotodon, which is estimated to have survived in some regions of Australia until about 7,000 years ago. The museum's collection also includes fossils from the Pleistocene epoch, such as the giant walking kangaroo Procoptodon goliah and the 'ninja turtle' Ninjemys oweni.
The Queensland Museum also has an extensive collection of megafauna fossils, with many specimens discovered since the first acquisition in 1862. The museum's collection includes fossils from the Darling Downs region, which are mostly Pleistocene in age (0.0117–2.58 million years ago). The Mount Etna Caves National Park, located north of Rockhampton, contains the largest and most species-rich Pleistocene rainforest fauna in Australia, with fossils of giant tree kangaroos, possums, snakes, and a land-dwelling crocodile.
The Western Australian Museum's fossil collection includes specimens from all continents, although the main focus is on Western Australia. The collection includes vertebrate body fossils, invertebrate body fossils, plant fossils, and trace fossils. The Early Cretaceous Broome Sandstone in Western Australia has yielded a large number of beautifully preserved leaves, cones, spores, and petrified driftwood. The state's fossil record also includes stromatolites, which are nearly 3.5 billion years old and may provide some of the oldest evidence of life on Earth.
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Fossilised remains of large extinct mammals
Australia is home to the fossilized remains of large extinct mammals, gigantic sea creatures, and different species of dinosaurs. The country's fossil record provides evidence of a diverse range of prehistoric life forms, from large land mammals to ancient marine reptiles.
One notable example of fossilized large extinct mammals in Australia is the Diprotodon, an ancient marsupial bear that roamed the continent 100,000 to 50,000 years ago. The Eromanga Natural History Museum, located in a town at the edge of Australia's ancient inland sea, offers visitors the opportunity to uncover the fossilized remains of this megafauna species. The museum also showcases Australia's largest dinosaur and provides a fossil prep lab experience for those interested in paleontological work.
In addition to the Diprotodon, other large extinct mammals that once inhabited Australia include the Thylacine, Tasmanian devil, and Tasmanian native hen. These species were extirpated from mainland Australia prior to European settlement, but survived in Tasmania. The Norfolk swamphen and several New Guinea mammals also disappeared before the arrival of European colonists.
The decline and extinction of Australian mammals have been significantly influenced by human activity, particularly since European settlement. The introduction of the dingo (Canis lupus dingo) approximately 3,500 years ago is believed to have contributed to the decline and change in the abundance of many species. The few Australian land mammals that were restricted to oceanic islands at the time of European settlement have shown a high propensity for extinction, with four out of six such species becoming extinct.
The fossil record in Western Australia is particularly notable, with the state boasting the world's richest assemblage of ammonites, an extinct group of cephalopods, from the latest Cretaceous period. The Western Australian Museum's fossil collection includes significant items such as the 380-million-year-old Gogo fish fauna and Pleistocene megafauna remains. The state's northern Pilbara region has also yielded stromatolite-like structures that are nearly 3.5 billion years old, providing some of the oldest evidence of life on Earth.
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Fossilised remains of gigantic sea creatures
Australia is home to the fossilized remains of gigantic sea creatures, large extinct mammals, and different species of dinosaurs. One such discovery is that of a previously unknown species of trilobite, named Redlichia rex. This fossil was found in South Australia and dates back to the Cambrian explosion, around 540 million years ago. Redlichia rex would have been a giant among its neighbours, reaching up to 30 cm in length and armed with spines for crushing and shredding its food. There is even evidence to suggest that it may have been a cannibal.
In addition to the Redlichia rex, other fossilized remains of gigantic sea creatures have been discovered in Australia. For example, the Lightning Ridge Fossil Dig in New South Wales offers a unique opportunity to find opalized fossils of plants and animals. The Australian Age of Dinosaurs in Winton also provides visitors with the chance to see fossils of marine reptiles and fish that dominated the large inland sea that once covered the area.
The Western Australian Museum boasts a significant fossil collection, including invertebrate fossils from the Cenozoic period, such as molluscs and echinoids. The museum also has fossils from the Permian period, including crinoids and sea stars collected from the Gascoyne Junction area in the Southern Carnarvon Basin.
One of the most exciting discoveries in recent years is the fossilized skeleton of a pterosaur, found near Richmond in Queensland. This discovery, made by an avocado farmer turned museum curator named Kevin Petersen, represents a new species of pterosaur with a wingspan of around 4.6 meters. The fossil has been named Haliskia peterseni in honour of its discoverer.
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Frequently asked questions
The Western Australian Museum boasts a fossil collection of approximately 1,500,000 specimens. The collection includes vertebrate and invertebrate body fossils, plant fossils, stromatolites, and trace fossils. The museum's fossil plants collection is mainly derived from the Permian period, with specimens of crinoids and sea stars.
The Age of Fishes Museum in Canowindra, NSW, is one of only two fossil fish museums in the world. The museum was built after the discovery of thousands of fossilized fish from the Devonian period. The Wellington Caves, located around 120km north of Canowindra, offers underwater coral reefs, megafauna, and First Nations artefacts from 50,000 years ago.
The Outback Triangle of Hughenden, Richmond, and Winton in Queensland is home to 98-million-year-old dinosaur bones, evidence of a dinosaur stampede, ancient marine reptiles, and the world's best-preserved fossils. The Eromanga Natural History Museum in Quilpie, southwest Queensland, is home to Australia's oldest dinosaur.
The Flinders Ranges at the old Ediacara minefield in South Australia features fossil imprints in rocks, which were the first fossilised remains of an entire community of soft-bodied creatures. The Emu Bay Shale site on Kangaroo Island comprises deposits from the Early Cambrian period, with complete body fossils of some of the first skeletal organisms.
The Talbragar fossil site in Australia contains one of the most significant Jurassic terrestrial fossil deposits in the country. The Alcoota Station in the Northern Territory features grass-covered plains that veil an enormous bed of fossil bones that are around eight million years old. The Victoria Fossil Cave at Naracoorte, South Australia, is considered to have Australia's largest and best-preserved Pleistocene fossil vertebrate deposits.
