Carpolite

/ˈkɑrpəlaɪt/ noun

Definition

A fossilized fruit or seed, especially a small or ancient one preserved in sedimentary rock.

Etymology

From Greek karpos (fruit) and -lite (stone), literally meaning 'fruit stone.' Paleobotanists use this term for carbonized or mineralized fruit remains found in fossil deposits.

Kelly Says

Carpolites are nature's time capsules—a single 100-million-year-old fossilized fruit can tell scientists what plants existed, what the climate was like, and what creatures ate them!

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