Ginkgo Fossils

The Ginkgophyta probably originated about the same time as the Cycads during the late Paleozoic, with fossils found in North America until the Miocene. The fan-shaped leaves of most members are quite distinctive. Gingko biloba is the only extant member having no living relatives.

The Ginkgo is considered to be a living fossil, with unambiguous fossils found in Permian strata. The fossil record indicates that they diversified and spread throughout Laurasia during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, after which they declined dramatically. Ginkgo adiantoides was the only remaining species in the Northern Hemisphere by the end of the Paleocene, and by the end of the Pliocene, fossil Ginkgos disappeared except in central China where the modern species has survived.

Zhou, Z. & Zheng, S. The missing link in Gingko evolution. Nature, 423, 821 - 822, (2003).

Ginkgo biloba
Middle Eocene
Tranquille Shale, Cache Creek, British Columbia, Canada