May 27, 2019 - Laurentian University’s Dr. Elizabeth Turner, professor of geology at the Harquail School of Earth Sciences, co-authored a paper published in the journal Nature this week. 

Earth is 4.5 billion years old, but the ‘normal’ fossil record consisting of marine shells and bones spans only the last 10% of its history (the Phanerozoic); the record of complex life on land is even shorter. This ‘obvious’ fossil record, visible to the naked eye, consists of fairly readily understood organisms representing most types of life - but there must have been an earlier history during which much of the diversity of life emerged evolutionarily but left no obvious record. Life in the first 90% of Earth history (the Precambrian) is commonly assumed to have been almost exclusively bacterial (prokaryotes), yet organisms that are more complex at a cellular level (eukaryotes) must have emerged sometime in the Precambrian. Investigating this early time of ‘hidden’ evolution is a challenging, hot topic in geological and paleobiological research. 

Specimens of a microscopic fossilised fungus named Ourasphaira giraldae were extracted from one-billion-year-old (1 Ga) shale of the Grassy Bay Formation in Northwest Territories, Canada, pushing back the date for the oldest known unambiguous fungus in the fossil record by more than half a billion years. The fossils have numerous physical characteristics typical of fungi, resembling modern fungal hyphae and spores.

Fungi are critical components of modern ecosystems because of their role in biological cycles: they decompose organic matter and make its energy and nutrients available to be reused. In deep time, they may have played an important role in the colonisation of land, contributing to the eventual success of land plants. Despite their importance, fungi have a very sparse fossil record owing to poor preservability.

The existence of fungi a billion years ago has profound implications.

1. The microfossil assemblage containing the fungus (described in earlier publications by the same researchers) implies the existence, a billion years ago, of a complex ecosystem containing diverse, microscopic eukaryotes that occupied most roles in a modern-type food web – photosynthesising, consuming photosynthesisers, degrading organic matter (fungus), and even predation of one eukaryote upon another. Earth’s biota therefore included diverse, complex organisms much earlier than previously assumed.
    
2. Fungus and animals are known to be genetically related (forming a group called ‘opisthokonts’) and share a common ancestor. The presence of fungus 1 billion years ago indicates that the divergence of the fungal and animal lineages must have taken place before that. Some form of proto-animal must have existed already by 1 Ga, long before the earliest known fossil evidence of animals (650 million years), and well before the advent of readily identifiable animal fossils (Phanerozoic).
    
3. The Grassy Bay Formation preserves sediment that was deposited in an estuary, a type of Earth-surface environment where land and ocean meet. It is possible that the fossil fungus was derived from land rather than living in a marine environment, which could suggest the presence of some type of simple ecosystem on land as early as 1 billion years ago.

May 14, 2013 - An innovative geo-science research project involving universities and mining industry sponsors from across Canada is being supported by the largest research grant ever awarded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) through its Collaborative Research and Development program.

The $5.1M NSERC grant was formally announced today by the Minister of State (Science and Technology), the Honourable Gary Goodyear. The NSERC funding is augmented by close to $7M in supportive funding from Canadian mining and related companies, acting through the Canada Mining Innovation Council (CMIC). The multi-year project will involve more than 40 researchers in geosciences from universities across Canada. The research is being co-led by Dr. Michael Lesher, Research Chair in Mineral Exploration and Professor of Economic Geology at Laurentian University and by Dr. Mark Hannington, Goldcorp Chair in Economic Geology and Professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Ottawa.

Known as "Footprints," the ambitious research project is expected to enhance the ability of geologists to assess the range, depth and composition of ore-bodies and mineral deposits, even those lying hundreds of metres underground.

"Essentially, the work we're pursuing will allow us to better detect the subtle signals or 'footprints' of mineral deposits far below the surface," said Dr. Lesher, official grant-holder for the research project. "It will help us devise better tools for remotely sensing deeply buried ore bodies and ultimately, we believe it can improve the way we approach mineral exploration and resource development in Canada and around the world."

"Canada's economic competitiveness depends on supporting business-related research and development that drives innovation," said Minister of State Goodyear. "Our government remains committed to supporting partnerships that will create jobs and strengthen Canada's long-term prosperity."

"We have worked toward this kind of collaboration for many years, and we are proud to be leading this extensive program of scientific investigation, with our academic colleagues and with the support of our mining industry partners," said Dr. Patrice Sawyer, Vice-President, Research and Francophone Affairs, Laurentian University. "This project will demand the skills and talents of the best research minds in the field today, working through Dr. Lesher and Dr. Hannington. It is an exciting opportunity for the research community."

The initial grant application to NSERC included 17 Canadian universities and 24 industry partners. Since the project won official approval, the number of participating universities has grown to 24, while the number of industry partners has grown to 27.

Industry sponsors through CMIC will be contributing more than $2.8M in cash and $3.9M in-kind for the research project.

"This project results from an unprecedented level collaboration among the exploration industry, service providers, government institutions, researchers and universities," said Dr. François Robert, VP and Chief Geologist, Global Exploration at Barrick Gold Corporation and one of the chief architects of the "Footprints" project. "Such a level of collaboration sets a new standard for our Industry," he added.

The collaborative nature of the "Footprints" project represents a 10-year strategic vision, shared by the Canadian university research community and the members of CMIC. "Footprints" is expected to be a flagship project, forming the basis for a Networked Centre of Excellence (NCE). There are only 15 of these networks presently funded by the Canadian government, and "Footprints" is the first focusing research on the science of mineral exploration.

"The scope and scale of this project is a testament to Laurentian University's leadership in mining related research," said CMIC Executive Director Carl Weatherell. "This is a significant step toward maintaining Canada's role as a world leader in mineral exploration."