Large Legume Seed Pod Plant Fossil from Green River

The Green River Formation deposits of Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah are best known for their immaculately-preserved fish, but other examples are known as well, as this specimen attests. This is an example of a large seed pod from a member of the Leguminosae (Pea family), one of the largest of families of flowering plants. The family holds several plants of use to man as a food source due to the fact that they harbor nitrogen fixing bacteria, and so need little to no additional fertilizer. For a somewhat smaller example with discernible seeds, see my other listings.