Ginkgo fossils can be found in strata dating back 174 million years, beginning in the Jurassic period of the Mesozoic era. The genus Ginkgo has evolved very slowly, so fossils from all throughout prehistory look very similar. Ancestors of this genus, in the order Ginkgoales, first appear in the fossil record about 270 million years ago, in the Permian period of the Paleozoic era. Over time, the order has become less and less prolific; currently in the Meghalayan age only a single species, G. biloba, remains.
