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Fossil Forests of Eastern Washington - Page 1 of 10 Introduction As you look out across the arid landscape near the town of Vantage in east-central Washington (figure 1), it is difficult to imagine that the surrounding area was once covered in dense forest. Approximately 16 million years ago however, that is exactly what it looked like. Forests of mixed deciduous trees and conifers covered land that now can only support sagebrush, shrubs, and grasses. Volcanic eruptions that covered southeastern Washington during the Miocene epoch preserved the wood, providing evidence of these ancient forests. Figure 1: Today's landscape at the Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park in Vantage, Washington Collectors all over the world seek to obtain specimens of the beautifully preserved fossil wood. The material is often used to make jewelry, bookends, and other decorative items. Beauty is more than skin deep in this case, however. The minerals that formed the fossils have faithfully preserved the original cell structures of the wood, allowing scientists to identify the types of trees that inhabited the forests of the Miocene. Information gathered from examination of these fossils provides an important contribution to an understanding of the geographical patterns of worldwide forests in the Miocene and an insight into the progression of tree evolution and extinction in this part of the world. Identification of tree types also allows scientists to infer the climate of the region during the Miocene. ©2004 - 2001 Evolving Earth Foundation. All rights reserved |
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