Description

Cretaceous Metasequoia sp. Cone

Late Cretaceous

Hell Creek Formation

Fallon County, MT USA.

Beautiful 50mm dawn redwood cone on 129mm matrix.

Metasequoia is a conifer genus that appeared during the early part of the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian age).  It survived the K/T extinction and thrived in North America during the Paleocene and Eocene.  It ranged as far north as Ellesmere Island, indicating a wet, mild climate even in northernmost Canada at the time.  However, climates began trending drier and cooler by the Late Eocene and the palaeogeographic range of Metasequoia became more restricted.

Metasequoia died out in North America by the end of the Miocene and was considered extinct worldwide until it was discovered alive in China in the 1940’s.  Since then, it has been successfully re-introduced into North America.