Discover the world's oldest forest ruins

Researchers unearthed the remains of a forest stretching 400km from New York State to Pennsylvania more than 380 million years ago.

Root system of Archaeopteris tree in Cairo forest viewed from above.(Photo: IFL Science).

The team discovered ancient forests at the bottom of sandstone quarries in the small town of Cairo, New York. This is the oldest forest ever found in the world. "The Devon period was the first forest to appear on Earth ," said lead researcher William Stein, emeritus professor of biology at Binghamton University. "This has led to changes in the land and ocean ecosystems, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere and global climate. Since then, the world has never been the same again."

The 3,000 m2 forest helps the research team to better understand the evolution and role of forest trees. As plants simply evolved into more complex systems, their interactions with the soil and atmosphere also changed, contributing to the creation of today's world, according to Dr. Chris Berry of the Earth Sciences School. and Ocean of Cardiff University.

Cairo forest is home to three groups of plants, each with its own unique root system. The original tree ferns do not have a flat leaf blade, shaped like a horsetail fern today, from 30 cm to 3 m high.

Another group of plants is the woody plant Archaeopteris . Shaped like a conifer, Archaeopteris has flattened leaf blades and broad root system. Grows up to 11 meters tall, this group of plants have many characteristics similar to modern trees, revealing the transition from spores to seeded plants.

Researchers have not yet identified the remaining plant group of the species but speculate it may be a pinecone tree. According to them, fish fossils on the quarry surface show that the forest was wiped out by a flood.

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