Is there anything that could cause only three fossils to appear instead of four?

[Belle T]

Normally I'm quite good when it comes to collecting fossils. I've learned all the tricks to find them, and have studied the often overlooked nooks and crannies that they can appear in when they become virtually invisible. But lately, after searching for at least an hour, I can still only find three fossils. The first time this happened, I just dismissed it as a bit of bad luck. The problem is, it's been happening for the past two weeks. High and low I search, between every flower and tree and behind every building, beside every bridge and in every patch of dirt, and even on the beach--even though I know they don't spawn there. But alas--each and every time--after up to two hours of searching, I am left with only three fossils and a pitfall trap.

I've already completed the fossils section of the museum, so it's not really that big of a deal, but they are nevertheless a good source of money. So, is there any obstruction or seasonal event that may cause the fossil count to decrease to three? Mushrooms, perhaps? I really can't think of anything.

 

[LadyDestani]

I'm not aware of anything that would cause all four fossils to not show up. They should still be there regardless of the mushrooms. I have had fossils hide in very tricky places before. I know you said you've checked everywhere, but I would look again behind every tree, every bush and every flower. Sometimes the dig mark can blend in depending on the time of day and the grass/dirt patterns, so I'll just dig in hard to see spots at random sometimes and find it that way.

 

[visibleghost]

the only way i know of is if a fossil is buried anywhere on your island by you, but that doesn't seem to be the case here?

 

[BigBadButterfree]

If only 3 fossils spawned then there must be 3 buried somewhere else. Of course, I can't see your island so idk if there's anything else preventing that, like spacing or clutter or whatever. But I'm pretty sure that 4 will always spawn, up to a max of 6 buried fossils. So if you have 2 buried somewhere 4 can still spawn, but if you have 3 buried then only 3 will spawn.

One thing I always has a hard time with was when they would spawn right behind taller flowers.

 

[Belle T]

Thank you four your replies, everyone. After continuing to search even harder, still no fourth fossil.

And there are no fossils buried anywhere on my island, so that isn't the issue.

 

[mangoseason]

I couldn’t find my fourth fossil for days but one day I found it while I was doing some landscaping. Maybe we can help if you give us your dream address with the most recent version of your town.

 

[Belle T]

Don't have the Dream Suite set up at the moment, unfortunately.

 

[RedPanda]

I haven't ever had that happen - but yeah it sounds like it might be the most ridiculously weird spawn location ever. I have definitely found them in some impossible-to-find spots that I only stumbled upon by chance. Hopefully that happens for you soon!