sedimentary
Favosites Fossil (Honeycomb Coral)
Favosites (Order Favositida)
Hardness: 3-4 (calcite base), Color: Grey, tan, or brown, Luster: Dull/earthy, Structure: Colonial honeycomb pattern of small polygonal cells (corallites) often 1-3mm wide.
Identified More sedimentary →
Explore Favosites Fossil (Honeycomb Coral) in the encyclopedia →Identify your own rocks.
Get a report just like this from any photo, free.
Physical properties
Hardness: 3-4 (calcite base), Color: Grey, tan, or brown, Luster: Dull/earthy, Structure: Colonial honeycomb pattern of small polygonal cells (corallites) often 1-3mm wide.
Formation & geological history
Formed in warm, shallow marine seas during the Silurian to Devonian periods (approx. 430 to 360 million years ago) through the permineralization of extinct coral colonies.
Uses & applications
Scientific study, educational collections, decorative display, and lapidary use (sometimes polished as Petoskey-like stones).
Geological facts
Favosites are known as 'honeycomb corals' because of their distinctive hexagonal cell structure. They are index fossils used to date geological strata from the Paleozoic era.
Field identification & locations
Identified by the distinct grid-like or honeycomb pattern on the surface. Commonly found in limestone outcrops and lake shores throughout the Great Lakes region of North America.
More like this
Other sedimentary specimens
Sandstone or Siltstone
Arenite (if sandstone)
Sedimentary
Cone-in-cone structure (Limestone)
Cone-in-cone structure (Secondary Sedimentary Structure)
sedimentary
Chert Breccia
Brecciated Chert (Microcrystalline Silica)
sedimentary
Sandstone Grain
Clastic Sedimentary Rock Grain (SiO2 dominated)
sedimentary
Shale or Slaty Mudstone
Argillaceous sedimentary rock
sedimentary
Sandstone
Arenite (primarily SiO2)
sedimentary