Thursday 25 February 2021

An Entire Tree

It's a amazing what can turn up when resurfacing a road. A complete fossilised tree has been found on the Greek island of Lesbos (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/25/unique-petrified-tree-up-to-20m-years-old-found-intact-in-lesbos). The 20 million year old fossil, is almost 20m long with all its roots, branches and leaves. The tree had been buried in ash after one of the many volcanic eruptions in this area. The most interesting thing about the fossil is that it is completely different from the species now dominating the island. This tree was clearly a species adapted to hotter climates.

No comments:

What's In a Critter's Name? 17. Goose barnacle

Nobody had ever seen a migratory Barnacle goose nest or lay eggs. Folk, consequently, decided they must emerge, by spontaneous generation, ...