- »
In the fossil-bearing beds in the area of S. Giustina, a rich terrestrial flora was found consisting of tree trunks and many leaves. Surfacing from the Sansobbia stream bed, remains of carbonified trunks, some of which of significant size, are clearly visible. Leaves are preserved as detailed imprints, with or without carbon film. The fossil terrestrial flora of S.Giustina, consisting of pteridophita, gymnospermae and angyospermae (Monocotyledons and dicotyledons) is very rich, both for the number of species and the number of specimens in each species.
This kind of deposits, dating back to the lower Oligocene (from around 34 to 28 millions years), can be situated into a system of alluvial plain and fan. The paleoflora, characterised by the presence of both tropical taxa and taxa from temperate areas, can be considered as belonging to an environment with hot climate (similar to that of many tropical forests of nowadays), where tree-ferns (Goniopteris polypodioides), big palms (Perrandoa, Isselia, Flabellaria, Phoenicites) and among the dycotiledons, Ficus, Artocarpus, Cinnamomum, Diospyros, Magnolia, Anona, Sapindus, Cassia, liliaceous, throve in the lower flat lands, while liana dycotiledons and ferns such as Pteris, Blechnum, Aspidium flourished in the hot-wet underwood. On the surrounding ridges, with a climate similar to that of the temperate zones of nowadays, the vegetation was characterised by dycotiledons such as Quercus, Castanea, Ilex, Mirica, Alnus, Fagus, Acer and Platanus and by conifers such as Sequoia, Taxodium and Glyptostrobus.
