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When scientists look for species that lived hundreds of millions of years ago, they do not always look for ancient animals. Life on Earth has changed a lot over time, but sometimes a new discovery reveals a few things that have remained largely the same.
In a new article published in Nature, researchers reveal the discovery of tiny microfossils dating back at least 900 million years – and perhaps even a billion years – that prove that some forms of fungi were alive and much older than did not think so.
Scientists have largely accepted the idea that life on Earth had begun in the oceans, but when life was moved from the sea to the mainland – and what types of life were invented for the first time – it still to be debated. This new information upsets our understanding of the types of life that first appeared on the mainland and could provide a clue as to when ancient animals roam the coast for the first time.
The fossils, which were found in Canada, suggest a much older date for terrestrial life than the researchers thought. The idea being that if fungi were present on the earth a billion years ago, animal life would probably have been present next door.
The fossils were in the form of chitin, a component of the mushroom cells, embedded in the rock. By dating the surrounding rock, scientists have landed on the estimated age of fossil fungi.
"That means that if the mushrooms are already present about 900 to 1 billion years ago, the animals should have been there too," said Corentin Loron of the University of Liege, author main part of the book. AFP. "It's reshaping our worldview because these groups are still here today. Therefore, this distant past, although very different from today's, may have been much more "modern" than we thought. "
It's an interesting discovery, and while it leaves a lot to the imagination in terms of a more global vision of earthly life on Earth a billion years ago, it remains a tempting glimpse of the past.
Image Source: Erhard Nerger / imageBROKER / REX / Shutterstock
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