Orchid fossil quells evolutionary quarrel

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2007

PARIS (AFP) — A bee trapped by a glob of sap inside a come-hither orchid up to 20 million years ago has rewritten the evolutionary tale of a flower with the most fanatical following of any plant in the world.

In a study published Wednesday, biologists say the most recent common ancestor to all modern-day orchids lived in the twilight of the dinosaurs, in the Late Cretaceous period some 80 million years ago.

The finding settles a century-old hothouse debate. Previous estimates, based on mainly circumstantial evidence, ranged from 26 to 110 million years ago.

What killed the dinosaurs -- wiped out, apparently when an asteroid whacked into Earth -- may also have helped orchids.

The flowers spread dramatically across the globe shortly after this mass...