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Article: A trio of living fossils.(Species Profile)(Metasequoia glyptostroboides )
- Article from:
- American Forests
- Article date:
- March 22, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 American Forests. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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In these days of cultivars and hybrids, it's important to appreciate nature's unadulterated artistry. Dawn redwood, ginkgo, and sweetgum are among the remarkable tree species that have outlived dinosaurs, survived the Ice Age, and remain unchanged to this day. Call them living fossils.
SWEETGUM
Today there are three existing species of Liquidambar: one in Formosa, one in Turkey, and one native to America. We know of 20 extinct species, the oldest from the Upper Eocene rocks of Greenland, in. an age when that continent had a subtropical climate, some 55 million years ago. The fossilized sap from sweetgum trees, containing ancient and extinct insects, is ...