Researchers have discovered a new species of ancient, microscopic fungus perfectly preserved on a fossilised plant leaf from up to 12 million years ago in the foothills of the western Himalayas. Disco…
Researchers have discovered a new species of ancient, microscopic fungus perfectly preserved on a fossilised plant leaf from up to 12 million years ago in the foothills of the western Himalayas. Discovered in the Mandi District of Himachal Pradesh, this microscopic time capsule is providing researchers with fresh clues about the Earth’s ancient ecosystems.
Palaeobotanists from Sidho-Kanho-Birsha University in Purulia, India, made the discovery. The researchers collected compressed fossilised leaves from sedimentary rock formations known as the Middle Siwalik. Because the delicate fungus was practically invisible to the naked eye, the team used a chemical process called maceration, bathing the fossil in a series of gentle acids to dissolve the surrounding rock and isolate the leaf’s transparent, waxy outer layer. When they placed this surviving leaf fragment under a high-powered light microscope, the intricate, dark-brown structures of the ancient fungus were revealed in stunning detail.
The researchers named the newly discovered species Vizellopsidites miocenicus. The specific name, miocenicus, directly references the Late Miocene epoch, the geological time period roughly 8 to 12 million years ago when the fungus lived and fossilised.
While the fungus shares similarities with other ancient and modern leaf-dwelling fungi, it has several unique characteristics that distinguish it from its closest known extinct relative, Vizellopsidites siwalika. Under the microscope, V. miocenicus features larger cells and a much looser, net-like arrangement of alternating side branches, unlike its cousin, which grew in dense mats that primarily branched at the tips. Furthermore, the new species features distinct, circular fruiting bodies, the structures that once released spores, nestled beneath a dark, protective web of cells.
Beyond the discovery, this tiny fungus tells a much larger story about the history of our planet’s climate. By comparing the fossil to its modern-day fungal relatives, which grow only in very warm, highly humid tropical environments, the scientists deduced what this region once looked like. The presence of V. miocenicus serves as direct evidence that millions of years ago, the terrain of the Himachal Himalaya was not the cooler, mountainous environment we know today, but rather a dense, sweltering, and vibrant tropical forest.
