[SatinDoll]

During the Permian herbaceous matter, such as trees and other plants, would die and be buried under silt. The bacteria that eats such matter today did not yet exist then and this plant material eventually metamorphosed (due to extreme pressure and heat underground) into coal. That is why coal is referred to as a ‘fossil fuel’.

Dinosaurs have nothing to do with the formation of coal, natural gas, or petroleum.

[chrisser]

Appreciate the quick lesson.

I thought I was being more obvious than I apparently was.

Contrary to popular opinion, I do know where coal comes from. If you take my remark knowing that, perhaps you’ll think it is funny as I intended - or perhaps not.

[Mike Darancette]

"This could literally be the smoking gun that explains the latest Permian extinction,"

I think that most coal comes from the Carboniferous period about 350 mya and way before the P-Tr extinction.