Scientists have found thousands of preserved plants, spiders and insects in Australia, which date back to the Miocene, revealing what the continent looked like millions of years ago.
Paleontologists discovered the fossil hoard in New South Wales, in an area so arid that British geologist John Walter Gregory called it “Australia’s dead heart” more than 100 years ago.
Fossils were kept secret on private land to protect it from illegal fossil collectors, while scientists excavated the remains of plants and animals that lived there 11 million and 16 million years ago.
Remnants of the Miocene
Researchers have discovered unique remains in the Australian fossil record of the Miocene, they report in a new study.
Most of the earlier Miocene finds found by other scientists in Australia were bones and teeth from larger animals, which are commonly preserved in Australia’s dry landscapes. However, the new site contains fossils of small, delicate creatures such as spiders and insects, as well as plants from the Miocene rainforest.
By examining the well-preserved fossils with scanning electron microscopes, the study authors were able to image minute details such as individual cells and subcellular structures. Some of the images revealed the animals’ last meals, such as fish, larvae, and partially digested dragonfly wing preserved inside the fish’s stomachs.
Diverse ecosystems
“This fossil site gives us unprecedented insight into what these ecosystems look like,” lead study author Matthew McCurry, curator of paleontology at the Australian Museum, told Live Science. We now know how diverse these ecosystems are, the species that live in them and how they interact. these types.”
Paleontologists first visited the site, now known as Macgrass Flat, in 2017, after a farmer reported finding fossilized leaves in one of his fields. “We were pleased to discover that the site produces a much wider range of fossils, including the remains of insects, spiders and fish,” McCurry said when the scientists investigated.
Lovely, detailed artists reimaginings too of that time…
Rare and fragile fossils found at a secret site in Australia’s ‘dead heart’#fossil #naturalhistory #paleontology #Australiahttps://t.co/rKsGGTVyab— PotentEpitome (@PotentEpitome) January 8, 2022
The area of the fossil-bearing rock layer is between 1,000 and 2,000 square metres, and scientists have so far excavated just over 50 square metres, McCurry said.
extinct rainforest
Millions of years later, researchers are collecting fossils to build a picture of an extinct Australian rainforest. They found leaves from flowering plants, pollen, fungal spores, more than a dozen fish specimens, an assortment of fossilized insects and spiders, and feathers from a bird that was about the size of a newborn sparrow, the study authors said.
While a lot has been discovered in the McGrass Flat, McCurry said, “This is really just the beginning of work on the excavation site.” “We now know the age of the sediments and how well preserved the fossils are, but we have years of work to describe and name all the species we find,” he added.
He considered that this fossil site would become very important in building a more accurate picture of how Australia has changed over time.