In an article published in the journal Ameghiniana , specialized in southern hemisphere paleontology, a team of researchers has revealed the discovery of a huge fossil deposit in Argentine Patagonia .
The enclave, near the Deseado massif, was discovered four years ago. Now, experts indicate that the remains that have appeared in it , between 140 and 160 million years old, extend over an area of 60,000 square kilometers , which makes it one of the most important fossiliferous areas on the planet.
” There is no other place in the world that contains such quantity and diversity of fossils from the Jurassic “, indicates geologist Juan García Massini , from the Regional Center for Scientific Research and Technology Transfer, in Argentina, who coordinates the research. These lie on the surface, where they have recently been exposed as a result of erosion. “You can contemplate the landscape as it was shown in the Jurassic, how the hot springs, lakes and channels were distributed, as well as the plants and other parts of the ecosystem,” says García Massini.
Fossils, corresponding to a wide variety of organisms, many of them microscopic, formed very quickly, sometimes in less than a day . This has allowed scientists to trace primitive fungi, cyanobacteria, and fungi when they were alive. They are, in fact, so well preserved that, according to García Massini and his collaborators, each rock extracted from this deposit could open the door to a new discovery .
Image: Eassi via Wikimedia / CC
