Fossils of the oldest forest in the world were accidentally found. It is 385 million years old
In Cairo, New York, in one of the abandoned mines, fossils of the oldest forest in the world have just been discovered.
More traces of the world’s oldest forest were discovered in an abandoned open-pit mine in Cairo, New York. Scientists first found its trace ten years ago. The tree fossils are embedded in rock that is 385 million years old. According to scientists, the find is a turning point in knowledge about the history of our planet.
“This place is special” – Christopher Berry, a paleobotanist from Cardiff University in the UK, told Science magazine. The bottom of the mine, on which there is a petrified forest, is the size of half a football field. This is the layer that, during the existence of the ancient forest, was located just below it. What can be seen in the rock today is the root system of the trees of that time. Roots embedded in the rock create unusual shapes that fascinate scientists. “When you are there, you walk on the roots of ancient trees.” Berry added. “In your imagination, it is easy to visualize the forest surrounding us” – he said. The band, of which Christopher Berry was a member, first hit the roots in 2009. The largest of them are 15 cm in circumference and form circles with a circumference of up to 11 meters. They probably belong to the extinct species Archaeopteris, a tree that resembled some of today’s leafy plants.
