For the first time in North America, a team of botanists from Drexel University has located a living plant whose species, Lychnothamnus barbatus . It dates back to the time of the dinosaurs.
It is a green algae that was believed to be extinct .
Not extinct plant
John D. Hall , Ph.D. from the Drexel Academy of Natural Sciences, and Kenneth Karol , from the New York Botanical Garden, are the authors of the article on this find, published in the American Journal of Botany.
The algae samples were taken from 14 lakes throughout Wisconsin , as well as two in Minnesota, between 2012 and 2016. According to the same authors :
The survival of Lychnothamnus barbatus is not, in itself, an ecological milestone, but it changes our view of what makes up the algal flora of North America and inspires us to keep looking for new finds.
The encounter of this species is relatively unique in the areas in which they are currently found. It is a type of algae that is known to inhabit areas of Europe and Australasia (the area of Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea).