Innerworld@lemmy.world to Archaeology@mander.xyzEnglish · 6 months agoScientists have confirmed that a 26ft tall, tree-trunk-shaped organism, first discovered in Scotland in 1843, isn't a fungus or plant, but an entirely distinct evolutionary branch of lifewww.telegraph.co.ukexternal-linkmessage-square24linkfedilinkarrow-up1181arrow-down15cross-posted to: science@lemmy.world
arrow-up1176arrow-down1external-linkScientists have confirmed that a 26ft tall, tree-trunk-shaped organism, first discovered in Scotland in 1843, isn't a fungus or plant, but an entirely distinct evolutionary branch of lifewww.telegraph.co.ukInnerworld@lemmy.world to Archaeology@mander.xyzEnglish · 6 months agomessage-square24linkfedilinkcross-posted to: science@lemmy.world
minus-squarecryptTurtle@piefed.sociallinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up42·6 months agoWiki has a breakdown of the debate and how it’s evolved: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prototaxites Neat stuff
minus-squarecalliope@retrolemmy.comlinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up13·6 months agoThis has absolutely blown my mind! This looks exactly like the kind of whose ancestors would, over millions of years, eventually mutate to become a tree. The polished fossil in the Wikipedia article looks a shocking amount like wood!
minus-squareTollana1234567@lemmy.todaylinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up3·6 months agothere were “trees” before actual trees evolved. in the carbiniferous, mostly from lycophytes,
minus-squareNaz@sh.itjust.workslinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up3·6 months agoDude; I think you’re absolutely correct. It looks like a proto-tree Also: Trees aren’t a uniform genus, but this goes to show, on any planet that has photosynthesis, trees will eventually evolve spontaneously
minus-squarePhoenix3875@lemmy.worldlinkfedilinkEnglisharrow-up3·6 months agoOne of the linked papers thinks it’s actually horizontal rather vertical, as people have guessed originally.
Wiki has a breakdown of the debate and how it’s evolved: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prototaxites
Neat stuff
This has absolutely blown my mind!
This looks exactly like the kind of whose ancestors would, over millions of years, eventually mutate to become a tree.
The polished fossil in the Wikipedia article looks a shocking amount like wood!
there were “trees” before actual trees evolved. in the carbiniferous, mostly from lycophytes,
Dude; I think you’re absolutely correct.
It looks like a proto-tree
Also: Trees aren’t a uniform genus, but this goes to show, on any planet that has photosynthesis, trees will eventually evolve spontaneously
One of the linked papers thinks it’s actually horizontal rather vertical, as people have guessed originally.