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Fossil hunting in Peru
The Pisco Formation of the coastal desert is one of the finest marine fossil deposits on Earth. Palaeontologists call it one of the most significant Cenozoic marine vertebrate Konservat-Lagerstatten anywhere.
Whale skeletons weather out of the Ica desert complete and articulated. Preservation goes beyond bone: researchers have recovered baleen, other soft tissues and stomach contents from these sediments.
The fauna is long and strange. Baleen whales, sperm whales, dolphins, seals, turtles, sharks and penguins all occur, supported by the same Humboldt upwelling that feeds the coast now. The giant penguins that reach the headlines are older, from Eocene rocks rather than the Pisco.
Ley 31204 of 2021 governs Peru's palaeontological heritage and puts INGEMMET in charge of it. Fossils leave the country only as a temporary authorised loan, seizures run into the thousands, and the deposit continues to lose material to looting.
1 fossil site
Updated 17 September 2026
Frequently asked questions
- Can tourists collect fossils in Peru?
- No. Ley 31204 makes fossils palaeontological heritage under INGEMMET and allows them out only as an authorised temporary loan. Fossils sold to visitors around Ica cannot legally be taken home.
- Where are Peru's whale fossils?
- In the Pisco Formation, exposed across the desert south of Ica. The Ocucaje district is the best known area, reached by four-wheel-drive tour from Ica or Huacachina.