| Top and bottom: Slabs of agate from Fossil Insect Canyon that have been professionally cut and polished to reveal cross-sections of numerous petrified palm roots; genus-species undetermned. The petrified palm horizon occurs near the base of the Barstow Formation in Fossil Insect Canyon, well below the fossil arthropods (inects, spiders, water mites, and fairy shrimp) preserved in the calcareous concretions. As such, the agatized palm roots are probably close to 19 million years old and cannot be used with any degree of confidence to help determine paleoenvironmental conditions present during formation of the paleoentomologically significant calcareous concretions. Images courtesy anonymous photographers at specific web pages. |