"Discovery of 1.6 Billion-Year-Old Fossils Suggests Lost World of Ancient Life"

Researchers have discovered 1.6 billion-year-old eukaryotic organisms, the Protosterol Biota, believed to be Earth’s first predators. These ancient creatures, found through fossil fat molecules in ancient rocks, were more complex than bacteria, predating and likely shaping early marine ecosystems. The discovery challenges previous theories of a predominantly bacterial ancient ocean. The Protosterol Biota lived at least one billion years before any animal or plant emerged and were abundant in marine ecosystems across the world, probably shaping ecosystems for much of Earth’s history.