Lagerstätte (from German for Lager 'storage, lair', and Stätte 'place) is the term for a sedimentary deposit that exhibits extraordinary fossils with exceptional preservation—sometimes including preserved soft tissues. These formations may have resulted from carcass burial in an anoxic environment with minimal bacteria, thus delaying decomposition.

Dr. Bill Orr received his BS, MS and PhD at Oklahoma, Univ. of California and Michigan respectively. He retired from The University of Oregon in 1997 after 30 years there and still runs the state collection of fossils (The Condon Collection) in Eugene as director. With his wife Elizabeth, he has co-authored the standard texts and references for Oregon and the Pacific NW, geology, and paleontology and are presently working on a book on the Willamette valley. 

Credit: Wolfgang Poguntke