Anglesea flora – a rainforest time capsule

Around 50 million years ago southern Australia was blanketed in tropical rainforest. Near Anglesea in southern Victoria this rainforest bordered streams crossing a floodplain, and masses of leaves fell onto soft sediments and were quickly covered.

The fossil leaves that were preserved are like a time capsule that reveals what the environment was like. These fossil leaves were extracted from the rock using a specialised technique that preserves their fine detail – complete with internal tissue, looking like a leaf plucked from fresh leaf litter.