| Here is the primary fossil leaf locality in the Hunter Mountain Formation. The carbonized fossil leaves of cottonwoods, willows and pond weeds, plus conifer needles, cone scales and occasional cones occur in an unnamed geologic rock formation of late Miocene age (roughly 5.8 million years old, as dated by radiometric methods). Take a field trip to the Hunter Creek Sandstone fossil locality. |
| A carbonized cottonwood leaf (Populus sp.) from the sandstone of Hunter Creek Sandstone, late Miocene in geologic age, 5.8 million years old as determined by radiometric age-dating methods. The specimen is 60 millimeters long. |
| A mostly complete specimen (the tip is missing) of a carbonized willow leaf (Salix sp.) from the late Miocene Hunter Creek Sandstone, Nevada. The specimen is 58 millimeters long. |
| A complete, entire, carbonized cottonwood leaf (Populus sp.) from the late Miocene Hunter Creek Sandstone, Nevada. Note the elongated stem; rarely does one find a cottonwood leaf specimen at the fossil locality with its distinctive long stem preserved intact. The specimen is 65 millimeters long. |