Messel Formation facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Messel Formation Stratigraphic range: Middle Eocene (Early Lutetian), ~47Ma PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Weathered bituminous shale of the Messel Formation
Type	Formation
Underlies	Eocene volcanic breccias
Overlies	Rotliegend
Thickness	around 200 metres (660 ft)
Location
Region	Hesse
Country	Germany
Type section
Named for	Messel

The Messel Formation is a special type of geologic formation found in Hesse, central Germany. It dates back to the Eocene epoch, which was about 47 million years ago. This formation is only found in one place: the Messel pit.

Here, the Messel Formation sits on top of older rocks, including ancient volcanic rocks. It is mostly made of lacustrine (lake-formed) layered shale, sometimes called 'oil shale'. This shale is famous for holding incredibly well-preserved fossils. These fossils include plants, insects, and many different animals, like the ancient primate Darwinius masillae.

The Messel Pit: A Fossil Treasure Chest
Amazing Fossils of Messel
See also

The Messel Pit: A Fossil Treasure Chest

Messel Pit Fossil Site
UNESCO World Heritage Site

Location	Darmstadt-Dieburg, Hesse, Germany
Criteria	Natural: (viii)
Inscription	1995 (19th Session)
Extensions	2010
Area	42 ha (100 acres)
Buffer zone	22.5 ha (56 acres)

The Messel pit (called Grube Messel in German) is an old quarry near the village of Messel. It's about 35 kilometers (22 miles) southeast of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. People used to mine bituminous shale here.

This pit is super important for science because it has so many perfectly preserved fossils from the middle of the Eocene period. Scientists have found over 1,400 different kinds of plants, fungi, and animals here. The Messel Pit was almost turned into a landfill, but local people fought against it. Because of their efforts, it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site on December 9, 1995. Scientists are still making amazing discoveries about early mammals and birds at the Messel Pit. It has also become a popular place for tourists to visit.

History of the Messel Pit

A view of the Messel oil shale layers inside the pit

Mining for brown coal and later oil shale started here in 1859. People first realized the pit was full of fossils around 1900. But serious scientific digging didn't begin until the 1970s. This was when oil prices dropped, making it too expensive to mine the shale.

Commercial mining stopped in 1971. A cement factory built in the quarry closed the next year. The land was then planned to become a landfill. However, these plans were stopped, and the state of Hesse bought the site in 1991. This made sure scientists could continue to study it. In the few years after mining ended, amateur collectors were allowed to find fossils. These amateurs developed a special "transfer technique" to save the tiny details of small fossils. This method is still used today to preserve these amazing finds.

Many fossils from the site were first found by amateur collectors. In 1996, an "amnesty" program was started. This encouraged people with private fossil collections to share them with public museums and scientists.

How Fossils Were Preserved at Messel

This map shows where Messel is located in Germany. The larger map shows where some primate fossils were found within the Messel pit.

The Messel pit's surface today is about 60 meters (200 feet) below the surrounding land. It covers an area of about 0.7 square kilometers (0.27 square miles). The 'oil-shale' rock layers originally went down about 190 meters (620 feet).

About 47 million years ago, during the Eocene period, the Messel area was much further south. The climate was very warm, with an average temperature of 22 °C (72 °F). The area had many maar lakes (lakes formed by volcanic explosions). These lakes were surrounded by thick, sub-tropical forests. This environment supported a huge variety of life. The Messel lake was likely a central point where water from nearby rivers and creeks flowed.

A fossil of the ancient mammal Kopidodon, showing the outline of its fur

The rocks in the pit formed about 47 million years ago. This is based on dating volcanic rock pieces found beneath the fossil layers. The main rock at the site is oil shale. It formed from mud and dead plants slowly settling on the lake bed without oxygen. These sediments are about 13 meters (43 feet) thick and sit on older sandstone.

The fossils in the shale are incredibly clear and well-preserved. This is because of the special conditions in the lake. The Messel pit is a "Konservat-Lagerstätte", which means a place with exceptional fossil preservation. The top layers of the lake had many living things. But the bottom of the lake had very little water movement and no oxygen. This meant few creatures could live there, so the dead animals and plants were not disturbed. Sometimes, the lake layers would mix, bringing oxygen-poor water to the surface. This caused many aquatic animals to die off. Combined with a slow rate of sediment buildup (only 0.1 millimeters, or 0.004 inches, per year), this created perfect conditions for preserving plants and animals.

What Caused the Deaths?

Some scientists think that events similar to the 1986 volcanic gas releases at Lake Nyos in Cameroon happened at Messel. They believe that gas, like carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide, might have burst out of the lake. This gas could have killed animals on land and in the air near the lake. Birds and bats might have fallen into the lake if they were flying low. Land animals could have been overcome by the gas near the shore.

Other scientists suggest that harmful algae blooms (cyanobacteria) in the lake might have poisoned animals. Animals drinking the water could have died. This idea is supported by finding fossils of animals that were mating or pregnant. This might mean many animals died during a specific season.

However, other researchers have looked at the number of fossilized bats found. They found that the number is similar to bats that drown in modern swimming pools. This suggests that there wasn't a huge "mass death" event for bats.

No matter how they died, the amazing preservation at Messel shows the lake was very deep. Animals that fell in sank into water with no oxygen and no scavengers. They were then covered by layers of mud that slowly turned into rock. This created a collection of fossils that are incredibly detailed, numerous, complete, and varied.

Visiting the Messel Pit

You can see fossils from the pit in the town of Messel. There's a fossil museum there. You can also visit the Hessisches Landesmuseum in Darmstadt (about 5 kilometers or 3 miles from Messel). The Senckenberg Museum in Frankfurt am Main (about 30 kilometers or 19 miles from Messel) also has exhibits.

Visitors can park close to the pit and walk about 300 meters (0.2 miles) to a viewing platform. From there, you can look down into the pit. You can only go inside the pit itself if you are part of a special guided tour.

Amazing Fossils of Messel

Splitting the shale with a large knife to find fossils

The Messel Pit offers the best-preserved evidence of plants and animals from the Geiseltalian age. Over 1,400 different kinds of life have been found. At most other fossil sites, you might only find parts of skeletons. But at Messel, the fossils are often complete. You can even see the fur, feathers, and outlines of skin on some animals!

This amazing preservation has led to some cool discoveries. For example, scientists found a fossilized leaf with "dumb-bell"-shaped bite marks. These marks were made by a carpenter ant that was controlled by a fungus called Ophiocordyceps unilateralis. This fungus, just like today, made the ant bite the leaf in a specific way to help the fungus spread its spores. This is the oldest proof of a fungus controlling an animal's behavior!

The wide variety of species found is partly due to the idea of periodic gas releases. Here's a quick look at some of the fossils found:

Nine pairs of fossil turtles were found in the act of mating. These turtles, Allaeochelys crassesculpta, were found with the male's tail tucked under the female, just like they mate today. Their death must have been very quick. Scientists think the turtles started mating in the oxygen-rich surface waters of the ancient lake. As they sank into deeper water, they were overcome by the release of toxic volcanic gas. Then they were buried in the lakebed. Turtles like these still live today. They have lost their scales and can absorb oxygen from the water through their skin. This helps them stay underwater for a long time. But in water without oxygen, it's a problem, because they also absorb carbon dioxide and poisons.
More than 10,000 fossilized fish of many different kinds.
Thousands of insects, both from water and land. Some even show their original colors!
Countless small mammals, including tiny horses, large mice, primates, hedgehogs, marsupials, pangolins, aardvark relatives, and bats. The fossilized bats have taught us a lot about how echolocation (using sound to navigate) developed.
Many birds, especially birds of prey.
Crocodiles, frogs, turtles, salamanders, and other reptiles and amphibians.
Remains of over 30 different plant species. These include palm leaves, fruits, pollen, wood, walnuts, and grapevines.

Here is a partial list of some of the amazing animals found:

Darwinius masillae (the first specimen found) showing the incredible preservation at Messel

A fossil of Masillamys at the Senckenberg collection

An early perch fish called Palaeoperca proxima

A fossil jewel beetle, still showing the shiny colors of its exoskeleton

Mammals of Messel

Darwinius masillae: An ancient primate, identified in 2009.
Kopidodon: An extinct tree-dwelling mammal.
Leptictidium: An extinct hopping mammal that ate both plants and meat.
Propalaeotherium: An early relative of modern horses.
Ailuravus: An ancient rodent.
Peradectes: A type of marsupial.
Palaeochiropteryx: An early bat.
Lesmesodon: A small meat-eating mammal.
Eomanis: An early pangolin.
Eurotamandua: A pangolin that looked like an anteater but had no scales.
Europolemur: Another ancient primate.
Hyrachyus: An ancestor of rhinoceroses.
Paroodectes: An early meat-eating mammal.
Messelogale: Another early meat-eating mammal.
Pholidocercus: An early hedgehog.
Macrocranion: An early long-tailed hedgehog.
Masillamys: An early rodent.
Messelobunodon: An early hoofed mammal.
Godinotia: An early primate.
Buxolestes: A semi-aquatic mammal, like an otter.
Hassianycteris: An early bat.
Archaeonycteris: An early bat.
Tachypteron: A possible ancient bat.

Birds of Messel

Palaeotis: An early relative of ostriches.
Strigogyps sapea: A large, flightless bird.
Eocoracias: An early bird with known colors, related to kingfishers.
Messelornis: The "Messel-bird," a type of crane-like bird.
Masillastega: A freshwater bird related to gannets and boobies.
Lapillavis: A possible relative of trogons.
Cypseloramphus: An early swift-like bird.
The Messelasturidae (Messelastur and Tynskya): Meat-eating relatives of modern parrots.
Palaeoglaux: An early owl with unique breast feathers.
Paraprefica: An early potoo bird.
Paraortygoides: A gamefowl-like bird.
Masillaraptor: An early falcon-like bird.
Parargornis: An early swift-like bird.
Messelirrisor: A tiny bird related to hoopoes.
Selmes: A mousebird with short toes.
Gastornis: A large, flightless bird.
Hassiavis: A member of the swift and hummingbird group.
Quasisyndactylus: A member of the kingfisher group.
Vanolimicola: A possible shorebird.
An unnamed lithornithid: A sandpiper-like ancient bird, the first of its kind found in Middle Eocene Europe.

Reptiles of Messel

Asiatosuchus: A large crocodile.
Diplocynodon: An alligator.
Hassiacosuchus: An alligator that ate hard-shelled prey.
Bergisuchus: A crocodile-like reptile.
Eoconstrictor: 2-meter-long snakes related to boas.
Messelophis: A tiny, live-bearing boa.
Messelopython: The oldest known relative of pythons.
Cryptolacerta: A lizard related to worm lizards.
Geiseltaliellus: A lizard related to casquehead iguanas.
Allaeochelys crassesculpta: Aquatic turtles related to pig-nosed turtles.

Fish of Messel

A bowfin: Similar to the modern genus Amia or Cyclurus.
Amphiperca: An early perch fish.
Palaeoperca: Another early perch fish.
Atractosteus: A gar fish.
Eel

Insects of Messel

Many types of true bugs (Hemiptera), including Wedelphus dichopteroides.
Many types of ants (Family Formicidae), including Casaleia eocenica, Cephalopone, Cyrtopone, Gesomyrmex pulcher, Messelepone leptogenoides, Pachycondyla eocenica, Pachycondyla lutzi, Pachycondyla? messeliana, Pachycondyla parvula, Pachycondyla petiolosa, Pachycondyla petrosa, Protopone, Pseudectatomma, Titanomyrma gigantea, and Titanomyrma simillima.
Bees (Family Apidae), including Protobombus messelensis.
Leaf-cutter bees (Family Megachilidae), including Friccomelissa schopowi.

Messel Pit: A Global Geological Heritage Site

In October 2022, the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) named the Messel Pit Fossil Site one of its 100 'geological heritage sites'. They called it the 'richest geosite in the world for understanding the living environment of the Eocene'. This means it's a key place with geological features that are important for science and help us understand Earth's history.