Ichnofossils in basaltic glass are putative microscopic trace fossils occurring on modern seafloor and throughout Earth history. While their biological origin remains debated, it is unknown why microorganisms thrive in […]
A UT San Antonio-led international research team has identified chitin, the primary organic component of modern crab shells and insect exoskeletons, in trilobite fossils more than 500 million years old, […]
In 2016 while hiking on a hillside in Morocco, geologist Rowan Martindale saw something that made her stop in her tracks: a slab of sedimentary rock covered in a wrinkly […]
Life emerged on Earth in an ultramafic world under anaerobic conditions and conditioned by particular environmental characteristics for which no record remains.
Around 540 million years ago, Earth’s biosphere underwent a pivotal transformation, shifting from a microbe-dominated world to one teeming with animal life, as nearly all major animal phyla appeared abruptly […]
The genus ‘Prototaxites’ had previously been thought to be an early type of fungus. However, in a new paper published in Science Advances, researchers from the University of Edinburgh and […]
The asteroid that struck the Earth 66 million years ago devastated life across the planet, wiping out the dinosaurs and other organisms in a hail of fire and catastrophic climate […]
Lichens were already widespread over 410 million years ago, according to a new international study which identifies a fossil from Brazil as one of the oldest lichen in Earth’s history.
In Earth’s fossil record, soft-bodied organisms like jellyfish rarely stand the test of time. What’s more, it’s hard for any animal to get preserved with exceptional detail in sandstones, which […]
During the Precambrian, stromatolite reefs played an essential role in the evolution of Earth’s climate and life systems. Many Precambrian basins contain salt-influenced stratigraphy, yet the potential for salt diapirism […]
