Researchers who discovered a lost fossil site in Brazil 70 years ago were unable to retrace their steps after scientists rediscovered it. One of the biggest extinction events in Earth's history could be better understood thanks to the unique geologic conditions at the long- lost site.
The rediscovered site is located in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, close to the border with Brazil. The conditions at the site were ideal for trapping and preserving dead organisms. Plants, which do not fossilize as well as animals do because they lack hard parts, are among the many delicate fossils found at the multiple rocky layers.
The Paleontologists were excited by the well-preserved remains. The researchers were unable to accurately record the exact geographical coordinates of the site, and when they tried to return to the site, they couldn't find it. The site was lost after the team gave up their search. A group of researchers succeeded in finding the lost location in 2019.
Fossils of non-dinosaurs were unearthed in 2021.
Joseline Manfroi, a paleobotanist at the University of Vale do Taquari, said that for decades the location of the outcrop was unknown. The site's history will be written through the fossil record after so long, according to Manfroi.
More than 100 fossils, mostly plants, have been uncovered by the original team and the co-authors of the new study. The researchers said some of the plants are from the past.
The image is the first of five.
A huge plant fossil has been found by researchers. The image was taken by Ferraz et al.
The rock layers are filled with fossils. The image was taken by Ferraz et al.
Rocks are sorted to find fossils. The image was taken by Ferraz et al.
A researcher is holding a piece of a plant. The image was taken by Ferraz et al.
One of the fossils is being analyzed by researchers. Lucas George Wendt's image was used.
The new team thinks that the fossils are just the beginning. When the original researchers discovered the site, they were only able to scratch the surface of the fossils before they lost track of their location. According to the statement, the area to be explored is huge. We haven't explored 30% of the space.
The extinction event that wiped out around 90 percent of life on Earth was caused by drastic climate change that took place at the end of the Permian. The fossils we are studying are of global importance as they are direct testimonies of the environmental changes that took place during the period. We will be able to retrieve information about the distribution of these plants.
The study can be downloaded for free in English and Portuguese from the Brazilian Society of Paleontology website. The article was published in Portuguese to make it accessible to the local population. Paleontology is cool to see.
It was originally published on Live Science
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