EduF104 Fern Leaves

3D Model

Fern Leaves (Pecopteris sp.)

133x89x24mm

Carboniferous (359-299Ma)

Large vascular plants like this fern evolved in the Devonian, and spread massively in the Carboniferous. To survive on land, they developed spores resistant to drying out in order to reproduce, transport systems known as vascular bundles to move water and nutrients around large plants and importantly, leaves like those preserved here. They have a large surface area to capture sunlight for photosynthesis, and have a waxy coating known as a cuticle to prevent excessive water loss. It is this cuticle, which is more resistant to decay, that is preserved being pressed together in layers of mud sediment in this compression fossil.

These ferns lived in swamp environments, but as temperatures dropped in the Permian due to decreased volcanic activity and the large population of plants consuming the carbon dioxide in the air, these swamp habitats disappeared and most of these ferns went extinct, in a way having contributed to their own demise.