Fossil Hunting by State

One of America's best states for fossil collecting. From megalodon teeth on Venice Beach to Ice Age mammal bones in Peace River, Florida offers easy access and incredible diversity.

The Calvert Cliffs along the Chesapeake Bay expose millions of Miocene shark teeth, whale bones, and marine fossils. Maryland is one of the East Coast's premier fossil collecting destinations.

Home to the Hell Creek and Judith River formations, Montana is the ultimate destination for dinosaur fossils. T. rex, Triceratops, and hadrosaurs have all been found here — this is where paleontology history is made.

North Carolina's coastal plain is packed with Miocene shark teeth and Cretaceous marine fossils. The Aurora area and Topsail Island beaches make this a top East Coast collecting destination.

A treasure trove of Ordovician marine fossils. Ohio's creek beds and road cuts expose 450-million-year-old trilobites, brachiopods, and crinoids, with several free public collecting sites.

From the White River Badlands teeming with ancient mammal fossils to Hell Creek dinosaur beds in the northwest, South Dakota offers extraordinary fossil diversity across dramatically beautiful landscapes.

From Cretaceous ammonites and echinoids in Central Texas to dinosaur tracks near Glen Rose, Texas offers diverse collecting across millions of years of geological history.

From Cambrian trilobites in the Wheeler Shale to Jurassic dinosaurs in the Morrison Formation and Eocene fish in the Green River Formation, Utah is a world-class fossil destination with vast public lands.

Home to the world-famous Green River fish quarries and Morrison Formation dinosaur sites. Wyoming's vast open spaces and fossil-rich formations make it a premier destination for collectors of all levels.

Cretaceous and Eocene marine fossils abound in Alabama's Gulf Coastal Plain. Creek exposures yield mosasaur bones, giant oysters, and beautifully preserved Eocene shells and whale vertebrae.

From the world-famous Sharktooth Hill bone bed to Pleistocene megafauna in the Anza-Borrego desert, California offers stunning marine and terrestrial fossils across diverse landscapes.

Home to the legendary Mazon Creek fossil beds, where Pennsylvanian-age concretions preserve ferns, insects, jellyfish, and the bizarre Tully Monster in extraordinary detail. A must-visit for collectors.

The Falls of the Ohio hosts one of the world's largest exposed Devonian fossil beds. Indiana's accessible creeks and road cuts yield beautiful corals, brachiopods, and crinoids — ideal for beginners.

Iowa's Devonian corals and Burlington Limestone crinoids are world-famous. Quarries, road cuts, and river bluffs yield beautifully preserved marine fossils from ancient tropical seas.

Home to the legendary Niobrara Chalk, where mosasaurs, giant fish, and pteranodons once ruled a vast inland sea. Western Kansas road cuts and chalk bluffs offer world-class Cretaceous marine fossils.

Rich Ordovician marine fossils blanket the Bluegrass region, and the Falls of the Ohio exposes one of the world's largest Devonian fossil beds. Road cuts and creek beds offer easy collecting.

Nebraska's badlands and grasslands conceal an extraordinary record of Cenozoic mammals. While the most famous sites are protected, the state's deep paleontological heritage rewards dedicated collectors.

A surprisingly rich fossil state where Cretaceous-age streams yield shark teeth, belemnites, and mosasaur fragments. Big Brook is one of the most accessible fossil sites on the East Coast.

Western New York's Devonian shales and limestones hold world-class trilobites, brachiopods, and crinoids. Penn Dixie Fossil Park near Buffalo is one of America's best public fossil collecting sites.

From the painted hills of John Day to the marine terraces of the coast, Oregon offers fossil mammals, petrified wood, and marine invertebrates across dramatically varied landscapes.

Devonian marine fossils and Pennsylvanian coal-age plants make the Keystone State a rewarding destination for fossil hunters. Road cuts and old strip mines expose ancient seas and tropical swamps.

Remote Cretaceous marine fossils on the North Slope, Jurassic ammonites in Southeast Alaska, and rare dinosaur tracks.

Famous for the Petrified Forest, Arizona also offers marine fossils from the Kaibab Formation and collectible petrified wood on BLM land across the desert Southwest.

Pennsylvanian marine fossils are abundant in the Ozarks and Ouachitas, with excellent crinoid and brachiopod specimens from the Fayetteville Shale and surrounding formations.

From Morrison Formation dinosaurs to Florissant's Eocene insects and Pierre Shale ammonites, Colorado offers world-class paleontology across dramatic Western landscapes.

Home to Dinosaur State Park and world-famous Jurassic dinosaur tracks in the Connecticut Valley.

Cretaceous and Miocene fossils along the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal, with shark teeth and marine shells.

Eocene marine fossils and Coastal Plain shark teeth make Georgia a rewarding state for collectors willing to explore its river bluffs and creek exposures.

As young volcanic islands, Hawaii has almost no fossil record. Raised coral reefs on older islands are the rare exception, making this the most challenging state for fossil collecting.

Famous Hagerman Fossil Beds (no collecting) and scattered Paleozoic marine fossils in eastern mountain ranges.

Pleistocene megafauna in river gravels and petrified palm wood, the official state fossil.

Maine's heavily metamorphosed rocks make fossils scarce, but Devonian plant fossils and Silurian marine sites reward dedicated collectors willing to search.

Connecticut Valley dinosaur tracks extend into the Pioneer Valley, plus glacial erratics occasionally containing fossils.

Home to the iconic Petoskey stone, Michigan's Devonian coral fossils are a beloved collecting tradition. The entire northern Lower Peninsula produces these beautiful colonial corals.

The Decorah Shale and other Ordovician formations in southeastern Minnesota yield beautifully preserved marine fossils including trilobites, brachiopods, and bryozoans.

Cretaceous and Eocene marine fossils, stunning petrified wood, and Gulf Coastal Plain exposures make Mississippi an underrated collecting destination.

The Burlington Limestone makes Missouri one of the best places in the world for crinoid fossils, with accessible road cuts and quarries across the state.

Nevada's ancient marine rocks yield exceptional trilobites from Cambrian and Ordovician seas, while the state fossil — the ichthyosaur — represents its rich Mesozoic marine heritage.

Very limited fossil prospects due to metamorphic and igneous bedrock. Some Devonian marine fossils in the far north.

Cretaceous seaway fossils, Permian marine invertebrates, and dinosaur trackways across diverse desert terrain.

The Hell Creek Formation extends into North Dakota, offering late Cretaceous dinosaur-age fossils alongside petrified wood and Paleocene plant material in the rugged Badlands.

Pennsylvanian marine invertebrates, Permian Red Beds, and classic Arbuckle Mountain trilobites give Oklahoma a diverse and underappreciated fossil record.

Extremely limited fossil prospects, but Pennsylvanian plant fossils persist in coal measures near Narragansett Bay.

The Cooper River near Charleston is one of the world's premier megalodon tooth collecting destinations. Divers and beachcombers alike find spectacular Cenozoic shark teeth.

From Ordovician marine fossils in Nashville road cuts to world-famous Cretaceous treasures at Coon Creek, Tennessee offers diverse collecting across deep geological time.

Limited but notable — Ordovician marine fossils and home of the Charlotte whale, Vermont's state fossil.

From Paleozoic marine invertebrates in the Appalachian valleys to Miocene shark teeth along the Coastal Plain, Virginia offers a wide range of fossils across its diverse geology.

From Eocene plant fossils in the Chuckanut Formation to the world-famous Ginkgo Petrified Forest, Washington offers unique Pacific Northwest collecting opportunities.

Pennsylvanian coal measures and Devonian marine exposures make the Mountain State a productive destination for fossil ferns, brachiopods, and ancient marine life.

Ordovician and Silurian marine fossils plus classic Cambrian trilobites make Wisconsin a solid Midwest collecting destination with accessible quarries and road cuts.