Mortichnia

Hi there! So, have you ever gone outside and seen bugs crawling around? Some people like to study those bugs and learn about them, and that's where mortichnia comes in.

Mortichnia is a big word that means "traces left behind by creatures after they die." That might sound a little bit spooky, but it's actually a really cool way to learn about the kinds of animals that used to live in a certain area a long time ago.

Sometimes, when an animal dies, its body will leave imprints or markings on the ground. Maybe it walked through some mud, or maybe its bones fell a certain way. These markings can tell scientists a lot of information about the animal- like how big it was, what kind of feet it had, and even how it might have moved around when it was alive.

So, mortichnia is like a clue that helps scientists learn more about animals and how they lived. It's pretty cool, right?