The province of Newfoundland and Labrador is world famous for its fossils and has long been favored by collectors and researchers. Accompanying the trilobites may be less abundant inarticulate brachiopods , graptolites and hyolithids . In central Newfoundland, bivalves , articulate brachiopods , bryozoa, cephalopods , conodont microfossils , corals , crinoids, gastropods , graptolites, ostracodes and trilobites are variably found in marine-deposited conglomerate, limestone, sandstone, shale and slate of Ordovician and Silurian age.
Fossils are particularly common on New World Island.
Western Newfoundland and southeastern Labrador have the greatest variety of fossils. These occur on the Port au Port Peninsula and the Great Northern Peninsula. During the offshore oil exploration on the Grand Banks, however, dinosaur bones were encountered by the drills. These assemblages have been used to define biostratigraphic zones. The base of each zone is defined by the first appearance of its characteristic species.