The diamond hunt in the far north of Canada has yielded surprising results: a coniferous wood in a volcanic rock for over 50 million years.

Clues to climate in the early Eocene images 1
Fossils found

This rare fossil has helped experts understand the climate in the early Ecocene period, lasting 56 to 34 million years ago. Accordingly this glacial region once had a swampy past.

Logs have been found inside kimberlite rock, a type of sometimes diamond-containing volcanic rock known as a 315-meter Panda circuit at Ekati diamond mine, in the southern part of the northern part of Lanh. Northern Territory of Canada.

According to a report published in the PLoS ONE journal, the Panda containment area at the beginning of the Eocene body was once covered by a hydroponic forest, like today's dark coniferous wood.

A kimberlite eruption that took place about 53.3 million years ago opened up a gap through the Earth's surface, "swallowing" some of these woods, according to University of Alberta research leader Alex Wolfe. .

Because fossils are perfectly preserved, it allows scientists to imagine a clearer picture of the climate in the early Eocene era.