A group of international scientists has achieved a milestone in the study of fossilized resin by finding the oldest amber in the world in northwest China. Published in Science Advances, the study concluded that these fragments are approximately 385 million years old, placing them in the period before the age of dinosaurs, thus altering the known historical record of this material.
Oldest Amber Discovered in China
The discovery occurred in the Hujiersita Formation of the Xinjiang region, a location of special interest for understanding the ecosystems of the Devonian period. This period is crucial for the evolution of terrestrial life.
These amber fragments are not like the typical large blocks displayed in museums. Instead, the samples are microscopically small, embedded in tiny coals, with the largest fragment measuring just 1.5 millimeters.
Despite their small size, these samples provide sufficient evidence to consider them the oldest amber identified so far, advancing the geological record by about 65 million years. This provides valuable information about the evolution of the first resin-producing plants.
The Devonian, which began about 419 million years ago, was fundamental for the expansion of terrestrial vegetation. This discovery indicates that there were already plants capable of producing resin during this period, showing an early development of plant defense mechanisms.
From the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology, scientists explained that these findings provide new evidence on the biological mechanisms that allowed plants to develop resin as a defense against external damage.
Despite the importance of resin in plant survival, its origin in evolutionary history remains an enigma. Amber is a rare find in Paleozoic deposits, when plants began to massively colonize the land.
The validation of the nature of these samples was carried out using infrared spectroscopy and gas chromatography, techniques that allow a detailed analysis of the chemical composition of fossil materials. The results indicated a similarity with the amber produced by conifers, offering clues about the evolution of terpenoid molecules and the resin systems of primitive plants.
