I love Pueblo's green chilis. New Mexico ain’t got nothin’ on Colorado.

Researchers at CU Boulder have discovered ancient chili pepper fossils that could turn our understanding of the tomato plant family on its head. 

Their study, featured in New Phytologist, reveals that the chili pepper tribe (Capsiceae) is over 50 million years old— much older than the previous guess of 15 million. Turns out, these fiery little fruits were already hanging out in North America. 

Postdoctoral researcher Rocío Deanna and undergraduate Abel Campos made this exciting find while examining specimens at the CU Boulder Museum of Natural History. They spotted unique traits in three fossils from the Eocene epoch, all collected from the Green River Formation in Colorado.

This discovery suggests the nightshade family, which includes about 3,000 species, was widespread across the Americas much earlier than we thought. While the exact shape and color of these ancient peppers remain uncertain, researchers believe they may have been smaller and packed a spicy punch. 

These fossils, sitting in the museum since the 1990s, prove that hidden gems are waiting to be discovered in museum collections. As Stacey Smith, a senior author of the study, notes, “Who knows how many new fossil species are just waiting for the right eyes to look at them?”