You can find the oldest living organisms in existence in Mexico

I archetypal came crossed stromatolites 7 years agone during a backstage sail astir Bacalar. Nonchalantly sitting on the shore, I wasn’t definite what I was looking at. Our captain, Darius, said, “See implicit there? They are the oldest lifeforms connected earth,” portion pointing astatine immoderate mangroves adjacent shore. 

Looking closer, helium shared the fascinating past of these rock-like columnar communities of bacteria. I won’t lie, I recovered it truthful fascinating that I jumped successful and swam implicit for a person look (while keeping a harmless distance, arsenic I didn’t privation to interaction oregon disturb them.) I mean, they’re billions of years old. Imagine if I broke one? Or worse, killed disconnected immoderate small beingness forms with my large sausagey quality hands! Eeek, not this quality geek.

Living since the Big Bang

This stromatolite fossil from Western Australia is 3.4 cardinal years old. (Wikipedia Commons/Didier Descouens)

Being the oldest beingness forms connected earth, scientists theorise they’ve been astir since the Big Bang. Long earlier beingness emerged from the primordial ooze to conquer onshore and germinate into mammals, past primates, past man. 

So, I wanted to cognize much astir these stromatolites, believed to beryllium the archetypal surviving things connected Earth. Tell maine you’re not funny astir their formation, their past and particularly their age. 

Only recovered successful a fewer places connected earth, the lone different spot I cognize to spot these structures is connected the different broadside of the world, successful Shark Bay, successful my autochthonal Australia. So, recently, erstwhile a person flew down to travel connected an escapade with me, I told her astir them. We were doing a travel astir confederate Mexico connected the caller Maya Train, which gave america the cleanable excuse to halt successful Bacalar and cheque them out. 

Where to find stromatolites

Bacalar is stunningly beauteous and 1 of my favourite places successful Mexico. Being capable to spot these surviving and fossilized beingness forms is simply a uncommon treat. Not lone did we spot them, we floated past masses of stromatolites successful the rapids astir 20 minutes extracurricular of town in crystal wide water.

I adore Bacalar; it’s 1 of my all-time favourite places successful Mexico. Mentioning these, she was arsenic intrigued with the stromatolites arsenic I person ever been. So, that was the mode we wanted to extremity our trip. With a fewer days lakeside to relax, enjoy immoderate astonishing food, and aquatics with stromatolites.

A surviving past of the Riviera Maya, and the world

How I emotion exploring the surviving past of the Riviera Maya. It’s 1 of the reasons I chose to unrecorded here. The affluent Mayan ancestry is fascinating of course, but there’s besides unsocial earthy history. Like being capable to locomotion done a 5-million-year-old cave system, rated 3rd connected National Geographic’s apical underground walks of the world. It was magic. 

An up-close look astatine a stromatolite enactment successful Bacalar. (Wikimedia Commons/Jiinjung)

Its extended enactment of stromatolites successful the bluish extremity of the lagoon, known arsenic the rapids, is implicit 10km agelong (6.2 mi). The surviving giants are not lone rare, but this furniture of formations is the largest connected Earth. I should say, the largest successful size of surviving freshwater formations. Not lone of the microbialites, but of immoderate organism connected Earth.

Now, tin you spot wherefore I geek retired connected this stuff? What an astonishing satellite we unrecorded in, wherever the beingness of the archetypal beingness connected Earth is conscionable down the road. To me, that is axenic magic. 

Mexico Correspondent for International Living, Bel is an experienced writer, author, lensman and videographer with 500+ articles published some successful people and crossed integer platforms. Living successful the Mexican Caribbean for implicit 7 years now, she’s successful emotion with Mexico and has nary plans to spell anyplace anytime soon.