The Torquay Museum in Devon is showing a new film this spring that tells the story of how a 377‑million‑year‑old tree fossil was found and recovered near Paignton. The screening gives local families and schools a chance to learn about a major scientific discovery made within the community that helps explain the ancient history of the region.
According to Torbay Council, the fossil consists of pieces of roots and bark from a primitive tree known as a lycopsid and is believed to be about 377 million years old. Scientists involved with the English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark say the remains provide among the earliest evidence of trees growing on volcanic/island/coastal settings in the Devonian. The Geopark and museum use the ‘Tropical Riviera’ concept to explain that, during the Devonian, the area lay in tropical latitudes as a group of volcanic islands near the equator — roughly 8,000 miles from its present position.
The documentary captures the difficult recovery, which required carefully winching the specimens up a cliff. Torbay Council says the operation was carried out by expert geologists and Hi‑Line (an arboriculture/tree‑management contractor), supervised by health-and-safety professionals. Experts note the ancient plant superficially resembles the palm trees that line Torquay today, even though the species are not related.
The English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark worked with Torquay Museum to prepare the display. The exhibition follows the first public reveal of the fossil on 6 September 2025 and allows visitors to see the ancient remains in person while watching the film to understand how the local landscape has changed over millions of years.
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