India, May 22 -- Ancient fossilized trees discovered standing upright through multiple layers of rock across the United States are fueling debate over whether catastrophic flooding events, including the biblical flood described in Genesis, may have played a role in shaping parts of Earth's geological history.

Known as "polystrate fossils," the formations consist of tree trunks preserved vertically through several layers of sedimentary rock, some of which are believed by scientists to have formed across vast stretches of time.

Examples of the unusual fossils have been documented at sites including Yellowstone National Park, Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park and Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument....