Cretaceous

• Including more than 350,000 known species, they dominate the ecological system, shape food webs and play a vital role in oxygen production.
• Plus, many of them are valuable commercial crops – think of roses, grains and tomatoes.

• A step change in research is shaking up the way scientists think about plants: they are far more complex and more like us than you might imagine.
• But not all scientists agree it is an angiosperm, due to the different definitions of flower organs.
• This is the largest known amber-preserved fossil flower, measuring about 3cm across and about three times as large as most floral fossils, showing beautiful details of this ancient flower.

Jurassic or Cretaceous?

• The timing of flowers’ evolution is still a matter of debate between scientists, but most scientists are in one of two camps: Jurassic or Cretaceous.
• Analyses using molecular data (DNA or protein sequences) suggest flowers could be much older than the fossil record shows – a Jurassic (145 million years ago) or even Triassic origin (201 million years ago).

Deciphering the past by molecular data

• One technique scientists use to determine the timing of evolutionary events is the “molecular clock”.
• This concept originated from the understanding that genetic mutations tend to accumulate at a constant rate across both time and species.
• To construct a molecular clock, researchers analyse gene segments that have been conserved throughout a species’ evolution.

Piecing the puzzle together

• Scientists examine fossil plants and observe the gradual changes in structures such as leaves, flowers and seeds over time.
• Comparing their anatomy allows researchers to identify similarities and differences between extinct and still-living species, or species in different clades.
• Biological traits which appear similar may be a result of convergent evolution, indicating changes in characteristics for environmental adaptation, rather than genetic similarity.

Mathematical approach can also help

• There is also a mathematical approach to estimating the age of angiosperms – for instance, using the Bayesian Brownian Bridge (BBB) method.
• This statistical model is a scientific formula that uses the distribution of fossils through time to estimate the age of a group.
• By using the BBB method, an international research team found that the origin of angiosperms supports a pre-Cretaceous hypothesis.

Ruolin Wu does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

• Even after the herd moves out of town, find dinosaur fun at home anytime with Jurassic Quest’s virtual resources.
• Free craft activities, word searches, coloring pages and more are available HERE , as well as the extensive Jurassic Quest Dino Directory HERE .
• See how the Jurassic Quest dino trainers celebrate International Dino Day, National Fossil Day, and check out other dino-tastic videos like Dino Storytime, Science Sundays and more on our YouTube Channel .
• And, the fan-favorite Jurassic Quest theme song HERE is newly remastered with captions so families can sing along!

• We’ve just announced the discovery of a new species of pterosaur nearly 15 years after a fossil was found on the Isle of Skye.
• It is one of the most complete pterosaur fossils to be found in the UK since palaeontologist Mary Anning unearthed the first from the Dorset coast in 1828.
• Pterosaur fossils are known worldwide but their remains are rare in comparison to those of their land and water-based relatives.
• This is due to the fragile nature of their skeletons, which are composed of thin-walled, hollow bones.

• But then we decided to examine the fossil using the university’s CT scanner.
• This pterosaur species is important because of the quality of preservation and its age.
• It is one of only a handful of pterosaur skeletons from the Middle Jurassic period, approximately 167 million years ago.
• It also shows how new technology can is helping to unearth the mysteries of Earth’s ancient past.

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Paul Barrett is affiliated with The Linnean Society (Trustee). Elizabeth Martin-Silverstone does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

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