'Oldest bamboo' fossil from Eocene Patagonia turns out to be a conifer
Tuesday, February 4, 2020 - 03:10
in Paleontology & Archaeology
A fossilised leafy branch from the early Eocene in Patagonia described in 1941 is still often cited as the oldest bamboo fossil and the main fossil evidence for a Gondwanan origin of bamboos. However, a recent examination by Dr. Peter Wilf from Pennsylvania State University revealed the real nature of Chusquea oxyphylla. The recent findings, published in the paper in the open-access journal Phytokeys, show that it is actually a conifer.