| Themes > Science > Earth Sciences > Geology > About Geology, Generalities > Principles of Geology > Other Basic Geologic Principles > Principle of Fossil Succession |
Where fossils are present in sedimentary rocks, the relative ages of the rocks can be determined from an examination of the fossils. This is because fossils occur in a consistent vertical order in sedimentary rocks all over the world. The Principle of Fossil Succession is valid and does not depend on any pre-existing ideas about evolution. Fossil succession was first recognized by William "Strata Bill" Smith in the late 1700's in England, more than 50 years before Charles Darwin published his theory of evolution. Geologists, however, interpret fossil succession to be the result of evolution - the natural appearance and disappearance of species through time. |
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