How do paleontologists identify dinosaur fossils so accurately when they often just look like rocks?

Question

I’m growing a casual interest in collecting dinosaur fossils. But, how does a paleontologist unearth something that, to a layman, looks like a mishapen rock, and then identify it as a 70 million year old triceratops shield bone?

This isn’t even stemming from a place of distrust toward online retailers who sell them, but more of a genuine curiosity at what the process is like. How can they find a small tooth and know that it was a teenage t rex tooth, vs any other sharp toothed creature?

In: Earth Science

Answer 1

They learn about the properties of bone structures and the patterns to look for in rock formations etc