Earliest known seed plant fossil comes from West Virginia

CHARLESTON, WV (WOWK) — Fossils offer answers to many questions about the past and how the world developed, and West Virginia happens to be the home of a key fossil in the evolution of plants.

Elkinsia polymorpha is the oldest known seed bearing plant fossil in the world, dating back to the Devonian period roughly 400 million years ago . Its deposits were discovered in sediments along U.S. 33 near its namesake of Elkins in the late 1970s by Joseph F. Schwietering of the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey.

The ancient fern-like plant has helped scientists gain a better understanding of how seed bearing plants developed throughout history. Unlike cones or flowers, the seeds of early seed plants were held in small tulip-shaped cupules that protected the seed and allowed for pollen to enter and fertilize it.

“The development of seed for reproduction was an essential step that allowed plants to colonize areas and environments that had previously been unsuitable,” according to the West Virginia Encyclopedia .

A sample of Elkinsia polymorpha can be found in the West Virginia State Museum in Charleston.

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