Editing Coprolite (section)

==Recognizing coprolites==

[[Image:Wilkes pseudocoprolite.jpg|thumb|A [[Miocene]] pseudocoprolite from Washington state. They are commonly mistaken for coprolites because of their appearance and shape; they are actually of inorganic origin. Scale in mm. See Spencer (1993).]]

The recognition of coprolites is aided by their structural patterns, such as spiral or annular markings, content, undigested food fragments, and associated fossil remains. The smallest coprolites are often difficult to distinguish from inorganic pellets or from eggs. Most coprolites are composed chiefly of calcium [[phosphate]], along with minor quantities of [[organic matter]]. By analyzing coprolites, it is possible to infer the diet of the animal which produced them.

Coprolites have been recorded in deposits ranging in age from the [[Cambrian]] period<ref name="kimmig">{{cite journal | first1 = Julien | last1 = Kimmig | first2 = Luke C. | last2 = Strotz | name-list-style = vanc |year=2017 |title=Coprolites in mid-Cambrian (Series 2-3) Burgess Shale-type deposits of Nevada and Utah and their ecological implications |journal=[[Bulletin of Geosciences]] |volume=92 |issue=3 |pages=297–309 |doi=10.3140/bull.geosci.1667 |doi-access=free }}</ref> to recent times and are found worldwide. Some of them are useful as [[index fossil]]s, such as ''Favreina'' from the [[Jurassic]] period of [[Haute-Savoie]] in [[France]].

Some marine deposits contain a high proportion of fecal remains. However, animal excrement is easily fragmented and destroyed, so usually has little chance of becoming fossilized.