Paleozoology is a branch of paleontology, biology, and/or zoology. It deals with the recovery and identification of animal fossils. These fossils are then used to help reconstruct prehistory environments as well as ancient ecosystems. They can be seen and studied without a microscope, though one can be used for deeper analysis. They are found dating back to the Ediacaran period, which was 635 million years ago, at the end of the Cryogenian Period.

The best example of paleozoology is easily the dinosaurs. They first appeared between 231 and 243 million years ago, and there have been thousands of thousands of fossils found. These fossils appear in a variety of ways, from carbon fossils to fossilized molasses, there are always interesting ways for new species of dinosaurs to sort of crop up. The way the fossils stay "alive" so long is because hard organic parts (bones, teeth, shells) do not decay as rapidly as soft organic parts (flesh, skin, organs).

Paleozoology is split into two subsections, the first section being vertebrate paleozoology. Vertebrate paleozoology is concerned with mapping out all vertebrates' evolution as well as how they changed over time. A vertebrate is an animal with a backbone or a spinal column, examples being mammals or birds. The origin of vertebrates has not been determined yet, though most believe that they evolved from an invertebrate marine creature called Amphioxus.

The second section is known as quantitative paleozoology. Quantitative paleozoology is focused on taking a census of fossils rather than an inventory. The difference between the two is that an inventory would be detailed information about the fossils, and a census of fossils is more about the number of fossils from a species had been recovered. This information is used to help determine what species were dominant as well as the nature of their species and how effective it was at reproducing.

Conservation biology sometimes relies on paleozoology. This data is used to help understand, control, preserve, and conserve species as well as their ecosystems. The data that conservation biologists use is mostly data from recently deceased animals that are still decomposing, rather than data used from animals of prehistoric times.

One of the biggest advocators outside of the paleozoological field is R. Lee Lyman. He is a professor and the Chair Department of Anthropology at the University of Missouri. He has stated that paleozoological research provides valuable information and insight into extinction rates as well as their causes. It can highlight ways to prevent those from happening in the future, as well as keeping populations in check.

Paleozoology helps in more ways than most people would think. It is a deeper understanding into our past in an objective form, allowing scientists to look at events in history and how they impacted the world. With further research and more studies, scientists will be able to find the origins of vertebrates and maybe even the origins of human life.

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