In situ wood fossil from Gorontalo, Indonesia

Abstract

Gorontalo, one of the provinces in Indonesia, has not been widely known for its potential of wood fossil. The anatomical structures observation and the age estimation were conducted on two specimens of wood fossils buried in Tohupo Village, Bongomeme District, Gorontalo. The anatomical features of wood fossils were observed through thin slices of the cross, radial, and tangential sections using a Carl Zeiss-Axio Imager-A1m microscope. The description of anatomical features referred to the IAWA (International Association of Wood Anatomists) list of microscopic features for hardwood identification. The age estimation of the wood fossils was based on Geological Map (scale 1: 100.000) of the Tilamuta sheet, Sulawesi. Based on anatomical structures observation, the species of wood fossils were identified as Hopenium sp. (merawan/hopea) and Shoreoxylon sp. (balau). The estimated age of wood fossils was 3.6 to 1.8 million years before the present (BP) (between the late Pliocene and Early Plistocene periods).