A recent study by researchers from the University of Cambridge has unveiled fossilized trees found by chance in southwest England that belong to the oldest known forest on Earth, dating to 390 million years ago. The findings, published in the Journal of the Geological Society, place this forest at a pivotal point in the history of terrestrial ecosystems.
Comparative analysis shows these ancient trees superseded the previously recognized Gilboa Forest in New York State, which is dated at around 386 million years old and had long been regarded as the earliest forest in the world. The Cambridge discovery shifts the record and deepens our understanding of plant colonization of land in the late Paleozoic era.
Scientists believe that plants once thought extinct are represented within this forest and include groups known as cladoxylopsids. These plants bear a distant relationship to ferns and horsetails, and though their appearance may evoke palm-like forms, they are not related to modern palms. They possess a tall central trunk with numerous branching limbs that resemble leaves, creating a sprawling, multi-branched silhouette. The preserved crowns of these fossil trees reach heights between two and four meters, illustrating a forested landscape that was already complex and layered despite its ancient origins.
Preservation methods reveal the trees in two primary states: hollow trunks filled with sediment and fossilized logs that have slowly flattened over countless ages. Traces of early connective tissues and the remains of branch attachment points remain visible, offering crucial clues about the growth patterns and architecture of these primordial trees. The site provides a rare window into the structural strategies plants employed to compete for light in crowded ancient forests.
In broader context, these discoveries contribute to a growing narrative about the pace and manner of terrestrialization. The evidence suggests that sizeable, tree-like organisms existed and thrived in environments where soils, climate, and atmospheric composition were markedly different from today. Such forests would have played a significant role in shaping early soil formation, regional hydrology, and biogeochemical cycles, influencing the distribution of animal life and the evolution of ecosystems over millions of years.
Overall, the Cambridge team emphasizes that the 390-million-year-old forest represents a major milestone in Earth’s biospheric history. The work underlines how accidental discoveries can redefine long-held scientific assumptions about when and where forests first took root, illustrating the dynamic and ongoing nature of paleobotanical research.