In the heart of the first Devonianabout 400 million years agostrange gigantic organisms lived that for more than a century and a half have asked disrespectful questions to paleontologists. These creatures, known by the name of Prototaxitesthey appeared like colossal tree trunks without branchescapable of reach up to 8 meters high. Discovered for the first time in 1843, they gave rise to a heated scientific debate: what were they really?
New hypotheses on the identity of prototaxites
For decades it has been assumed that the prototaxites could be giant mushroomsbut a recent study, published on BIORXIV And currently waiting for a peer revision, it also seems to deny this hypothesis. The researchers analyzed an exceptionally preserved fossil of the species Prototaxites Taitifound in the fossiliferous sediments of Rhyniein Scotland, one of the most important locations for the study of the flora and fauna of the Devonian.
Frommorphological analysis it emerged that the anatomical structures of the fossil do not correspond to those of the known mushrooms. In addition, the study compared the molecular composition by P. Taiti with that of other fungal fossils dating back to the same period and coming from the same site. The result is surprising: P. Taiti does not contain traces of Chitinathe main component of the fungal cellular walls, present instead in the other samples analyzed.
A modern comparison eukariatic being
The document clearly reads that the morphology and molecular imprint of Prototaxites Taiti are clearly different from those of mushrooms, plants, animals and algae. The authors conclude that it is a eukaryotic belonging to a completely extinct group, which does not find correspondences in the currently recognized biological realms.
This discovery opens new scenarios about the remote past of the earth, suggesting that forms of life today existed in the Devonian impossible to classify with modern categories. The mystery of the prototaxites, therefore, still remains without a definitive response And it will be necessary to continue digging – in a literal and scientific sense – to shed light on one of the most fascinating puzzles of paleontology.
