Fossil possum

Fossil possum

The remains of this possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) were preserved in the asphalt of a road surface near Taupō in 1992. Geologists cut out the section of road and it is now on display at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa in Wellington. Tar is an effective preservative, and spectacular fossils have been pulled out of tar pits around the world. This 1992 fossil illustrates that fossils are not only relics of the distant past but are forming all the time.