Editing Microfossil (section)

{{Short description|Fossil that requires the use of a microscope to see}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
[[File:Cochleatina.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35| {{center|An enigmatic [[carbonaceous microfossil]],<br />''[[Cochleatina|Cochleatina canilovica]]'', from the [[Ediacaran|Late Ediacaran]]{{hsp}}<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Slater|first1=Ben J.|last2=Harvey|first2=Thomas H. P.|last3=Bekker|first3=Andrey|last4=Butterfield|first4=Nicholas J.|title=Cochleatina: an enigmatic Ediacaran–Cambrian survivor among small carbonaceous fossils (SCFs)|journal=Palaeontology|year=2020|volume=63|issue=5|language=en|pages=733–752|doi=10.1111/pala.12484|bibcode=2020Palgy..63..733S |issn=1475-4983|doi-access=free}}</ref>}}]]

A '''microfossil''' is a [[fossil]] that is generally between 0.001&nbsp;mm and 1&nbsp;mm in size,<ref>{{cite web|last1 = Drewes|first1 = Charlie|title = Discovering Devonian Microfossils|url = http://www.eeob.iastate.edu/faculty/DrewesC/htdocs/microfossilsABLE.doc|publisher=Iowa State University|access-date = 4 March 2017}}</ref> the visual study of which requires the use of light or electron [[microscopy]]. A fossil which can be studied with the naked eye or low-powered magnification, such as a hand lens, is referred to as a [[macrofossil]].

Microfossils are a common feature of the [[geologic timescale|geological record]], from the [[Precambrian]] to the [[Holocene]]. They are most common in deposits of [[ocean|marine]] environments, but also occur in brackish water, fresh water and terrestrial [[sedimentary]] deposits. While every [[Kingdom (biology)|kingdom]] of [[prehistoric life|life]] is represented in the microfossil record, the most abundant forms are [[protist skeletons]] or [[microbial cyst]]s from the [[Chrysophyta]], [[Pyrrhophyta]], [[Sarcodina]], [[acritarch]]s and [[chitinozoa]]ns, together with [[pollen]] and [[spores]] from the [[vascular plant]]s.