3.4bn-year-old fossils found

RELICS of the dawn of life 3.4 billion years ago have been unearthed in Australia.

The microscopic fossils are the oldest ever discovered and date back to a time when the earliest forms of bacteria survived in an oxygen-free world.

“At last we have good solid evidence for life over 3.4 billion years ago,” said Professor Martin Brasier, from the department of earth sciences at Oxford University.

When the bugs were alive, the world was still a hot, violent place shaken by volcanic activity.