Huge fossil forest in the mine

The strange fossil forests have just been found in Illinois (USA), with petrified trees clearly visible on the ceiling of mines, covering thousands of hectares.

Ruins of a tree grow about 300 million years ago.Photo: BBC.

They are among the first forests to evolve on the planet, Dr. Howard Falcon-Lang said at the British Science Association Festival taking place in Liverpool.

"These are the largest fossil forests ever found anywhere in the world at any geological time," he stressed.

"It is unusual to find a petrified landscape preserved in such a large area. We are talking about the area of ​​Bristol (England)."

These forests appear several million years apart, in an age 300 million years from us, and this class overlaps another class. They are revealed by large-scale mining operations in the border areas of Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky.

When the layers of coal are removed, vertical stems can be seen with roots rooted to the ground, and nearby are scattered trees. "We found trees up to 30 meters long pouring down with intact trees." Some parts are very refined.

Researchers believe that this finding could open up evidence of how modern forests respond to a hot world.

Scientists are looking for places that can be forest carpet.Photo: BBC.