''Eobacterium'' is an extinct genus of

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were am ...

from the

Fig Tree Formation The Fig Tree Formation, also called Fig Tree Group, is a stromatolite-containing geological formation in South Africa. The rock contains fossils of microscopic life forms of about 3.26 billion years old. Identified organisms include the bacteriu ...

in Africa. It is about 3 billion years old, one of the oldest known organisms. The discovery of ''Eobacterium'' and other Fig Tree organisms in the 1960s helped prove that life existed over three billion years ago.

References

* K.N. Prasad: An Introduction to Paleobotany. * Prehistoric bacteria {{bacteria-stub