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Connecticut College professor´s co-discovery of 50 million-year-old fossil sheds clues on lake ecology

August 11, 2005

For immediate release - Aug. 11, 2005 Contact: Eric Cárdenas (860) 439-2508; eric.cardenas@conncoll.edu

Connecticut College professor's co-discovery of 50 million-year-old fossil sheds clues on lake ecology

NEW LONDON, Conn. - In a recent co-discovery of 50 million-year-old fossils of a common freshwater group of algae, Peter A. Siver, the Charles & Sarah P. Becker '27 Professor of Botany and Director of Environmental Studies Program at Connecticut College, may have unlocked clues about the evolution and environmental degradation of freshwater lakes and the characteristics of lake ecology during ancient geologic time periods.

The recent discovery of the algae - known as scaled chrysophyte - adds the single cell organisms to the valuable inventory of living fossils, which include horseshoe crabs, dragonflies and sequoia trees. The fossils, which today are globally distributed and are common in lakes in New England, were found in core samples from between 313 and 416 feet deep in an area known as the Giraffe Pipe kimberlite deposit in Canada's Northwest Territories.

In addition to six new and presumably extinct species were the remains of organisms that appear remarkably like those found today.

Along with co-researcher Alex Wolfe at the University of Alberta, Siver's find shows that the scaled chrysophytes, with their unique siliceous scale-like armor, have evolved little in 50 million years, surviving and thriving despite environmental stress and change - including impacts from climate change, acid rain and more recently industrial and residential development.

Previously, the fossil record of scaled chrysophytes extended only a few thousand years. "It's still unclear about the chrysophyte's origin, but we do know this fascinating group of organisms was around almost back to the Mesozoic era - the time of the dinosaurs - and has evolved little in 50 million years," Siver said. Until their findings, virtually nothing was known about the origin of this important algal group.

Siver is a noted expert in limnology, which is the study of lakes and phycology, the study of algae. He has also focused his research on acid rain and the effects of environmental stresses on aquatic ecosystems.

Ranked among the most selective private liberal arts colleges in the nation, Connecticut College enrolls 1,900 men and women from 46 states and 40 countries. The college is known for putting the liberal arts into action through interdisciplinary studies, international programs, funded internships, student-faculty research and service learning. Founded in 1911, the college operates under an 83-year-old honor code. The college is located at 270 Mohegan Ave, New London, about two hours by car from Boston and New York. The 750-acre campus is an arboretum overlooking Long Island Sound. For more information, visit www.connecticutcollege.edu.

Editor's Note: Photos of the "living fossil" available upon request

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For media inquiries contact: Amy Martin (860) 439-2526; a.martin@conncoll.edu