This cache is part of a series of caches dedicated to the reminiscence and admiration of Roseville’s early dwellers. It is part of a series of caches called “CACHE OUT IN ROSEVILLE”
New evidence shows that coffee, potatoes, tomatoes, and mint’s ancestral plants have their roots in the Cretaceous Period. And that conclusion is largely thanks to a fossilized fruit vine discovered in the dirt below peoples’ Granite Bay homes.
The history of the find goes back to the 1990’s, when construction workers unearthed a fossilized fruit vine while building houses. The fossil was preserved in a collection of items housed at the Natural History Museum, located at nearby Sierra College. However, it was recently “rediscovered” by Brian Atkinson (professor of ecology and evolutionary biology) and Dick Hilton (Sierra College geology professor). This fruit fossil vine belonged to an evolutionary branch called “lamiids”. Lamiid species include woody vines, olives, chili peppers, and many other foods we eat today.
Atkinson realized that this fossilized flowered vine was from the Cretaceous Period, when triceratops and tyrannosauruses walked the earth. Lamiids had been missing a really solid fossil record during this period, so there was kind of an uncertainty as to how this group evolved. But now this new fossil discovery is a really solid piece of evidence that they evolved in the Cretaceous Period – 80 million years ago.
What does all this mean? Your morning cup of joe, the mint that garnishes your drink, your French fries, as well as your ketchup --- all have roots in the Cretaceous Period. Plus they all managed to survive the natural disaster that wiped out larger living things.
Atkinson’s discovery also indicated that Granite Bay was once a more jungle-like setting, because the closest relatives to these flowering fruit vines are located in more tropical zones today. Similar fossilized flower vines have also been found in Chico. The famous fossil can be seen at the Sierra College Natural History Museum, 5100 Sierra College Blvd, in Rocklin Ca. This cache, FOSSILIZED FRUIT, pays tribute to this little wild and fascinating discovery. (this information from an article by Benjy Edel, “Sacramento Bee” writer.)