The discovery of the worlds oldest fossilized forest in South West England, dating back 390 million years, supplies essential insights into the early forms of tree life and their influence on Earths landscapes during the Devonian Period. This innovative research study highlights the substantial role of early trees in stabilizing environments and shaping the development of river systems. A forest of Calamophyton trees. Credit: Peter Giesen/Chris BerryThe oldest fossilized forest ever found in the world, going back 390 million years, has actually been situated within the towering sandstone cliffs of the Devon and Somerset coast in South West England.The fossils, discovered and recognized by researchers from the Universities of Cambridge and Cardiff, are the earliest fossilized trees ever discovered in Britain, and the oldest recognized fossil forest in the world. This fossil forest is roughly 4 million years older than the previous record holder, which was discovered in New York State.The fossils were found near Minehead, on the south bank of the Bristol Channel, near what is now a Butlins holiday camp. The fossilized trees, called Calamophyton, in the beginning glance, resemble palm trees, however they were a prototype of the sort of trees we recognize with today. Instead of solid wood, their trunks were thin and hollow in the center. They also did not have leaves, and their branches were covered in hundreds of twig-like structures.Fossils of fallen Calamophyton logs. Credit: Neil DaviesThese trees were also much shorter than their descendants: the largest were in between two and 4 meters high. As the trees grew, they shed their branches, dropping lots of plant life litter, which supported invertebrates on the forest floor.Geological SignificanceScientists had previously assumed this stretch of the English coast did not consist of significant plant fossils, however this specific fossil find, in addition to its age, also demonstrates how early trees helped shape landscapes and support riverbanks and shorelines numerous countless years earlier. The outcomes are reported in the Journal of the Geological Society.The forest dates to the Devonian Period, in between 419 million and 358 million years ago, when life began its very first huge expansion onto land: by the end of the duration, the very first seed-bearing plants appeared and the earliest land animals, mainly arthropods, were reputable. Information of fallen tree trunk. Credit: Chris Berry”The Devonian duration essentially altered life on Earth,” said Professor Neil Davies from Cambridges Department of Earth Sciences, the studys first author. “It also changed how water and land interacted with each other, given that trees and other plants helped support sediment through their root systems, however little is known about the really earliest forests.”Ecological Insights and Research MethodologyThe fossil forest identified by the researchers was found in the Hangman Sandstone Formation, along the north Devon and west Somerset coasts. Throughout the Devonian period, this area was not connected to the rest of England, but instead lay more south, linked to parts of Germany and Belgium, where comparable Devonian fossils have been found.”When I first saw photos of the tree trunks I instantly knew what they were, based upon 30 years of studying this kind of tree worldwide,” said co-author Dr Christopher Berry from Cardiffs School of Earth and Environmental Sciences. “It was fantastic to see them so near to home. However the most revealing insight comes from seeing, for the very first time, these trees in the positions where they grew. It is our very first chance to look straight at the ecology of this earliest type of forest, to translate the environment in which Calamophyton trees were growing, and to evaluate their effect on the sedimentary system.”The Hangman Sandstone Formation, along the north Devon and west Somerset coasts, where these fossils were discovered. Credit: Neil DaviesThe fieldwork was undertaken along the highest sea cliffs in England, some of which are just available by boat, and exposed that this sandstone formation remains in fact abundant with plant fossil product from the Devonian period. The scientists recognized fossilized plants and plant debris, fossilized tree logs, traces of roots, and sedimentary structures, maintained within the sandstone. Throughout the Devonian, the site was a semi-arid plain, crisscrossed by small river channels spilling out from mountains to the northwest.”This was a quite odd forest– not like any forest you would see today,” stated Davies. “There wasnt any undergrowth to mention and turf hadnt yet appeared, however there were lots of branches come by these densely-packed trees, which had a big impact on the landscape.”This period marked the very first time that tightly-packed plants were able to grow on land, and the sheer abundance of particles shed by the Calamophyton trees built up within layers of sediment. The sediment impacted the manner in which the rivers flowed throughout the landscape, the first time that the course of rivers might be affected in this method.”The proof contained in these fossils protects a key stage in Earths advancement, when rivers began to operate in an essentially different way than they had before, ending up being the terrific erosive force they are today,” stated Davies. “People sometimes think that British rocks have actually been taken a look at enough, however this reveals that revisiting them can yield important brand-new discoveries.”Reference: “Earths earliest forest: fossilized trees and vegetation-induced sedimentary structures from the Middle Devonian (Eifelian) Hangman Sandstone Formation, Somerset and Devon, SW England” by Neil S. Davies, William J. McMahon and Christopher M. Berry, 23 February 2024, Journal of the Geological Society.DOI: 10.1144/ jgs2023-204The research was supported in part by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). Neil Davies is a Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge.
Credit: Peter Giesen/Chris BerryThe oldest fossilized forest ever found on Earth, dating back 390 million years, has actually been located within the towering sandstone cliffs of the Devon and Somerset coast in South West England.The fossils, found and determined by researchers from the Universities of Cambridge and Cardiff, are the oldest fossilized trees ever found in Britain, and the earliest known fossil forest on Earth. The fossilized trees, known as Calamophyton, at very first glimpse, look like palm trees, but they were a model of the kinds of trees we are familiar with today. As the trees grew, they shed their branches, dropping lots of vegetation litter, which supported invertebrates on the forest floor.Geological SignificanceScientists had actually formerly assumed this stretch of the English coast did not include significant plant fossils, but this specific fossil discover, in addition to its age, also shows how early trees assisted shape landscapes and stabilize riverbanks and coastlines hundreds of millions of years earlier.”When I initially saw photos of the tree trunks I instantly knew what they were, based on 30 years of studying this type of tree worldwide,” said co-author Dr Christopher Berry from Cardiffs School of Earth and Environmental Sciences. It is our first opportunity to look directly at the ecology of this earliest type of forest, to translate the environment in which Calamophyton trees were growing, and to examine their effect on the sedimentary system.