This is no ordinary flower.
It has lived on the earth for about 65438+ billion years.
"When the New Year bell rings, others are listening to fireworks, and we are refreshing the paper. When it was published on the first day of the new year, it was a double happiness. When I return to the lab in the next year, everyone will celebrate again. " On the other end of the phone, Shark Wang couldn't hide his happiness.
"This is not an ordinary flower, it has survived on the earth for about 1 100 million years. 654.38 billion years ago, these flowers were wrapped in resin to form amber, which was well preserved. " Shark Wang said that these plant fossils preserved in amber were formed before the Indian plate was completely separated from Gondwana. With the disintegration of Gondwana and the northward movement of India plate, the ancestors of this biota spread to northern Myanmar through India plate, and their descendants have been living and reproducing in the Cape flora of South Africa.
"Studies show that the flora of northern Myanmar is related to the flora of the southernmost part of the African continent, and frequent wildfires in Cretaceous may be an important reason for the evolution of angiosperms." Shark Wang said.
This is one of the amber fossils used in this study. (Photo provided by the interviewee)
Give up the thermal research on amber
Study the world in the eyes of dinosaurs
Besides teaching students, studying amber fossils has occupied almost all the life in Shark Wang and Shi Chao.
More than a decade ago, when the genomics of this major was in full swing, the two men chose to study relatively unpopular amber fossils. At that time, many teachers advised them that genomics research could develop faster, more papers could be published, and it was relatively easy to apply for project funds. The study of amber fossils may be poor, and it is difficult to publish papers, declare funds or land in the industrial chain.
Although the road ahead is very difficult, for Shark Wang and Shi Chao, they chose this road that most people don't like because of their keen curiosity and strong sense of responsibility. The two often sum up their work by "studying the world in the eyes of dinosaurs".
Among the known amber groups, Burmese amber was formed about 654.38 billion years ago. About 1% of these amber contain fossils and inclusions, of which more than 90% are insects and less than 10% are plants. Therefore, Shark Wang's team focused on the simplest and most difficult plant fossils.
Different from ordinary fossils, amber fossils have the greatest advantage of retaining the three-dimensional shapes of plants and insects 1 100 million years ago, helping scientists uncover the oldest secrets in the world. For Shark Wang, the process of cutting amber rough stone is like opening a blind box. I always feel that there will be surprises in the next second, and I don't know what creatures I will become attached to.
Phylica plants in South Africa. (Photo provided by the interviewee)
Another amber study is coming to an end.
More specimens are used than "flowers that have been in bloom for hundreds of millions of years"
On New Year's Day, Shark Wang and his team members were very excited after the publication of the cover paper "Fire-resistant Rhamnaceae Plants Originated in South Africa Found in Amber 100 Million Years ago". After the joy, they will continue to devote themselves to a new round of amber research.
In addition, Shark Wang and his team are still studying insect fossils. This insect plays an important role in the growth of plants and the evolution of fungi. However, researchers previously thought that the insect originated after the Cenozoic era, and the time was particularly late. If so, wouldn't it be that the Mesozoic didn't play this role?
"Because of this, the academic circle has been controversial, saying that this key link is missing in the ecological chain of the dinosaur era." Shark Wang revealed: "We found that this insect group was very specialized in the early stage, and it has been able to complete some complex behaviors. We have analyzed its morphological characteristics, and we must make up for the gap that was missing during that time and make up for the missing part of the ecosystem. "
This is a representative species photo of the descendants of amber fossil plants. (Photo provided by the interviewee)