![]() NPS Photo It hasn’t been long since a new species of fossil ginkgo, Ginkgoites watsoniae, was discovered from the Late Triassic Chinle Formation in Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona. G. watsoniae was discovered in the green mudstones of the Blue Mesa Member of the Chinle Formation that has yielded up so many fossil plant compressions. It is quite rare, but that may be due to the location where the trees grew in the Late Triassic, away from the edge of the watercourse’s edge so less chance for fossilization than plants closer to the water. Upper photo features the fan shaped leaves of the only living species, Ginkgo biloba, that’s planted in the plaza outside the Painted Desert Visitor Center. The lower photo is the Late Triassic fossil ginkgo, Ginkgoites watsoniae. |
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Last updated: May 14, 2021