A recent study published in Annals of Botany has shed new light on a 47-million-year-old plant fossil discovered in eastern Utah. The fossil, initially believed to be part of the ginseng family, has been reclassified as a unique species with distinctive flowers and fruits.
The discovery was made by Steven Manchester, curator of paleobotany at the Florida Museum of Natural History, who analyzed physical features of the old and new fossils. He and his team extensively searched for any living plant family to which they could belong but found no match.
“This fossil is rare in having the twig with attached fruits and leaves,” Manchester said. “Usually, those are found separately.” The team’s results underscore a pervasive problem in paleobotany, where extinct plants are often placed within modern families or genera, leading to a skewed estimate of biodiversity in ancient ecosystems.
The fossils were discovered in the Green River Formation near the ghost town of Rainbow in eastern Utah. The area was once a tectonically active, massive inland lake system that provided perfect conditions for fossil preservation.
Researchers who studied the original leaf fossils had limited information to work with, as they lacked flowers, fruits, or branches. However, the new fossils revealed leaves attached directly to stems, eliminating the possibility of it being in the ginseng family. The fossil’s berries also ruled out families like grasses and magnolias.
Despite extensive analysis, the team found no match for the plant’s unique features in modern or extinct families. However, the discovery provides a clue about how organisms evolved and adapted in different places.
The study highlights the importance of continued research and access to museum specimens through digital tools like iDigBio. It also shows that even with advanced equipment, fossils can still reveal surprising secrets.
Source: https://scitechdaily.com/47-million-year-old-alien-plant-baffles-scientists-with-strange-features