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Paleobotany Research Paper

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dy of plant fossils and the understanding the evolution of plant life and ecology of earlier eras is known as paleobotany. Paleobotanists concern with fossil records of plants and their geologic history greatly describes the main concept of paleobotany. Only a small percentage of the plants that ever lived left evidence of existence. The major plant fossils that have been discovered are mineralized wood, flowers in amber, leaf imprints in coal, or other plant life many years ago. Paleobotanists document fossil records and use this evidence to find the past evolution of plants. Paleontology or paleobiology is the study of plant, animal, and microorganism fossils found on the earth. Paleobotany focuses on algae, fungi, mosses, ferns, seed plants …show more content…

Diatomite is a rock that forms from the silica cell walls of a group of unicellular algae known as diatoms. Diatoms are found in both fresh water and salt water. When they die, their cell walls dissolve under water and become compacted over time into diatomite. The fossilization rock, may have fossil remains of many kinds of plants preserved within it. Amber is considered a mineral that is used as a gem but is less valuable than precious stones. Amber or semiprecious stones is the fossilized resin produced by earlier cone-bearing evergreen trees. Before resins harden, floral parts, pollen grains, fungal spores, and other plant parts may become trapped and be preserved. Amber is valued for jewelry and as fossils mainly from two parts of the world, the region of northern Europe and the Dominican Republic. When describing different types of fossilization, specific qualities of the fossil are used. A two-dimensional with organic material is called compressions. The physical 3-D structure is compressed to one or two-dimensions. Peat, lignite, and coal are compressions of thick plant debris of covered mineral sediment. Impressions are two-dimensional imprints lacking organic material. If the sediment is grained, impressions may show detailed external forms of the plant. Casts and models is a three-dimensional that has a surface layer of organic material. A cast is made when sediment is deposited into cavities left by the decay of plant parts. A mold is a cavity left in the sediment by the decayed plant tissue. Molds are usually unfilled, or partly filled with sediment. Casts and molds may be found together with the cast filling the mold. Permineralizations are also three-dimensional with plant tissue being infiltrated by mineral-rich fluid. The internal structure of the plant is preserved in three dimensions. Lastly, molecular fossils are non-structural and preserves organic

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