Glossopteris indica, Antarctic fossil leaf

Fossilised plant leaf collected by Robert Falcon Scott's British Antarctic Expedition 1910-1913, also known as the Terra Nova expedition. On the return from the South Pole, the chief of scientific staff Wilson collected this specimen that was later found among the 16 kilogrammes of geology specimens found near the Polar Party's last camp. It contained remains of the extinct plant Glossopteris indica, evidence that Antarctica was once part of the supercontinent Gondwana. Fossilised plants also showed that the climate of Antarctica had been very different in the past

Antarctic Antarctica Beardmore Climate Fern Fossilised Glacier Glossopteris Indica Nova Pteridosperm Pteridospermatophyta Seed Seed Fern Seed-fern Terra Treasures Woodland

Features In These Collections

> Contributors > NHM