XL 2.1" Fossil Pine Cone Equicalastrobus Replaced By Agate Eocene Age Seeds Fruit
Location: Talsine, Morocco
Weight: 0.8 Ounces
Dimensions: 2.1 Inches Long, 0.7 Inches Wide
The item pictured is the one you will receive.
Equicalastrobus petrified pine cones are fossilized conifer seed cones primarily found in the Western Sahara of Morocco, particularly near Talsine and west of Boujdour. These fossils date back to the Eocene epoch, approximately 33 to 55 million years ago.
The preservation of Equicalastrobus pine cones occurs through permineralization, a process where original organic material is replaced by minerals like agate or silica, creating a detailed agatized fossil. The abundance of these cones indicates that the ancient Moroccan landscape was likely a coniferous jungle during the Eocene. Frequent insect damage on the fossils suggests past ecological interactions. While these cones are from the conifer family, the exact tree species that produced Equicalastrobus remains unidentified. Similar to modern pine cones, these cones contained seeds and served to spread coniferous trees, also providing food for ancient animals.