The ancestor of banksias came from North Africa

January 30, 2024 1:41 AM

Banksias are iconic Australian plants, but their ancestors actually came from North Africa. "Our research, published in Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics, shows that the ancestors of banksias actually migrated here from North Africa. From early fossil pollen studies, we already knew that the protea family (Proteaceae), which includes banksias, grevilleas, waratahs and macadamias in Australia, originated in northwest Africa 130 million years ago. Our task was to track their migration to Australia, where they became the unique symbols of the Australian bush that we admire today."
posted by chariot pulled by cassowaries (2 comments total)

Fascinating. I'd had no idea fossil pollen could be so valuable for research, and it's amazing to see the long route over large land masses banksias' ancestors took to get to Australia.
posted by EvaDestruction at 6:59 AM on January 30

Oh banksias are such cool plants, I love seeing that they have this amazing history. What a great story, thank you for posting it!
posted by kitten kaboodle at 12:30 PM on January 30