Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.
Prospecting is synonymous in some ways with mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale and at least semi-scientific effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore deposits. To actually be considered a prospector you must become registered as a professional prospector. This process is easy but necessary if you wish to work in mineral exploration.
Prospecting is quite intensive physical labor, involving a considerable amount of traversing (traditionally on foot or on horseback), panning, sifting and outcrop investigation, looking for tell-tale signs of mineralisation. A prospector must also make claims, meaning they must erect posts with the appropriate plackards on all four corners of a desired land they wish to prospect and register this claim before they may take samples.
