“Resin is a direct plant item specified as a lipid-soluble mix of unstable and non-volatile substances typically exhibited within a plant or at its surface area, primarily by gymnosperms,” stated lead author Dr. Johann Klages from the University of Bremen and coworkers.

“Some plant resins have the ability to fossilize under particular conditions and get maintained in the geological record as amber.”

“Until now, the southernmost amber discovers are of mid-Cretaceous age and have actually been found in the Otway basin in southern Australia (Otway amber) and as part of the Tupuangi Formation on the Chatham Islands, New Zealand (Tupuangi amber), respectively.”

The very first Antarctic amber was recuperated by the MARUM-MeBo70 seafloor drill rig from the mid-shelf area of Pine Island trough in the Amundsen Sea Embayment, West Antarctica, throughout Recreational vehicle Polarstern Exploration in early 2017.

Called Pine Island amber, the specimen is mid-Cretaceous in age, in between 92 and 83 million years of ages.

The discovery shows a swampy temperate jungle environment near the south pole that was controlled by conifers.

“The Antarctic amber most likely includes remains of initial tree bark as micro-inclusions,” stated co-author Dr. Henny Gerschel, a scientist at the Saxon State Office for the Environment, Agriculture and Geology.

“Considering its strong, transparent and clear particles, the amber is of high quality, suggesting its burial near the surface area, as amber would dissipate under increasing thermal tension and burial depth.”

“We likewise discovered signs for pathological resin circulation– a method trees utilize to seal broken bark caused by parasites or wildfires, thus producing a chemical and physical barrier securing from insect attacks and infections.”

“Our discovery is another piece of the puzzle and will assist us getting a much better understanding of the swampy, conifer-rich, temperate rain forest environment recognized near the south pole throughout the mid-Cretaceous.”

“It was extremely interesting to understand that, at some time in their history, all 7 continents had weather conditions permitting resin-producing trees to make it through,” Dr. Klages stated.

“Our objective now is for more information about the forest environment– if it burned down, if we can discover traces of life consisted of in the amber.”

“This discovery permits a journey to the past in yet another more direct method.”

A paper reporting the discovery was released today in the journal Antarctic Science

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Johann P. Klages et alDiscovery of Antarctic amber. Antarctic Sciencereleased online November 12, 2024; doi: 10.1017/ S0954102024000208