First record of Podocarpoid fossil wood in South China

A new species of fossil conifer wood, Podocarpoxylon donghuaiense sp. nov., is described from the late Eocene of Nadu Formation in Baise Basin of the Guangxi Province, South China. This fossil wood is characterized by distinct growth rings, circular to oval tracheids in cross section, 1–2-seriate op...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports 2016-08, Vol.6 (1), p.32294-32294, Article 32294
Main Authors: Li, Long, Jin, Jian-Hua, Quan, Cheng, Oskolski, Alexei A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
631/181/414
631/449/2669
Dispersal
Fossils
Growth rings
Humanities and Social Sciences
multidisciplinary
New species
Parenchyma
Physical characteristics
Plant structures
Science
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Summary:A new species of fossil conifer wood, Podocarpoxylon donghuaiense sp. nov., is described from the late Eocene of Nadu Formation in Baise Basin of the Guangxi Province, South China. This fossil wood is characterized by distinct growth rings, circular to oval tracheids in cross section, 1–2-seriate opposite pits on radial tracheid walls, uniseriate (rarely biseriate) rays, smooth end walls of ray parenchyma cells and the absence of resin ducts, suggesting its affinity to Podocarpaceae. The new species is distinctive from other Cenozoic woods ascribed to this family by the combination of distinctive growth rings, the absence of axial parenchyma, the occurrence of bordered pits on tangential tracheid walls and the occurrence of 3–4 cuppressoid or taxodioid pits on cross-fields. This represents the first record of podocarpoid fossil wood in South China and provides fossil evidence for the early dispersal and diversification of Podocarpaceae in eastern Asia as well as for mild temperate seasonal climate in this region during the late Eocene.
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/srep32294