1,720,972 research outputs found
Plastid Data Support the Inclusion of the Greater Antillean Genus Atalopteris in Ctenitis (Polypodiales: Dryopteridaceae)
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Plastome phylogenomics and new fossil evidence from Dominican amber shed light on the evolutionary history of the Neotropical fern genus Pecluma
No full textAbstract Premise Molecular studies based on chloroplast markers have questioned the monophyly of the fern genus Pecluma (Polypodioideae, Polypodiaceae), which has several species of Polypodium nested within it. We explored the delimitation of Pecluma and its biogeographic pattern by evaluating the phylogenetic position of four Polypodium species not sequenced thus far and integrating the first fossil evidence of Pecluma . Methods Using herbarium material, we applied a genome‐skimming approach to obtain a phylogenetic hypothesis of Polypodioideae; assessed the combination of character states observed in the fossil from Miocene Dominican amber using a previously published phylogeny of Polypodioideae based on four plastid markers as framework; calculated divergence times; and conducted an ancestral area estimation. Results Within Polypodioideae, Pecluma was recovered as sister to Phlebodium . Three of the newly sequenced species— Polypodium otites , P. pinnatissimum , and P. ursipes —were recovered with maximum support within the Pecluma clade, whereas P. christensenii remained within Polypodium . The closest combination of character states of the fossil was found within Pecluma . Our biogeographic analyses suggest an Eocene origin of the genus in South America, with several subsequent Oligocene and Miocene colonization events to Mexico–Central America and to the West Indies. Conclusions Although the circumscription of Pecluma is still challenging, our results elucidate the origin and age of the genus. The newly described fossil, Pecluma hispaniolae sp. nov., supports the hypothesis that the epiphytic communities of the Greater Antilles exhibit a constant generic composition since the Miocene. We propose new combinations ( Pecluma otites , Pecluma pinnatissima , and Pecluma ursipes ) to accommodate three species previously classified in Polypodium
The first fossil of Lindsaeaceae (Polypodiales) from the Cretaceous amber forest of Myanmar
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gen. et sp. nov., a fossil fern in the family Pteridaceae (Polypodiales) from the Cretaceous amber forests of Myanmar
No full textAbstract Divergence time estimates suggest that most clades constituting the fern family Pteridaceae (Polypodiales) were in existence by the Early Cretaceous. However, fossil evidence to corroborate this remains exceedingly rare. Burmese amber is an important source of new information on the radiation of derived fern lineages during the Cretaceous Terrestrial Revolution. This study describes Heinrichsia cheilanthoides gen. et sp. nov., a fern with suggested affinities to Pteridaceae, based on fertile foliage portions preserved in Early Cretaceous (~100 Ma) amber from Myanmar. Heinrichsia cheilanthoides is characterized by a pinnate‐pinnatifid frond that bears apical, marginal sori protected by a pseudoindusium. Sporangia are of the polypod type and contain tetrahedral‐globose, trilete spores with a striate perine. This discovery provides a new calibration point to test and refine molecular clock‐based concepts of the evolutionary history of the Pteridaceae. Heinrichsia cheilanthoides further substantiates the suggestion that the Cretaceous forests of Myanmar were home to a rich fern flora
A fossil species of the enigmatic early polypod fern genus Cystodium (Cystodiaceae) in Cretaceous amber from Myanmar.
Full text linkThe monospecific fern genus Cystodium (Cystodiaceae; Polypodiales) occurs exclusively in the tropical forests of the Malay Archipelago, the Admiralty Islands, the Louisiade Archipelago, and the Solomon Islands. Divergence time estimates suggest that the genus originated in the Mesozoic; however, fossil evidence to validate this suggestion has been lacking. Amber from Myanmar (Burmese amber) is an important source of new information on the diversity of vascular cryptogams in the Cretaceous. This paper describes the fossil taxon Cystodium sorbifolioides nov. sp. based on a fragment of a fertile leaf preserved in Burmese amber that represents the first fossil evidence of the family Cystodiaceae. Cystodium sorbifolioides is used to obtain a minimum age estimate for the Cystodiaceae and the closely related, monogeneric Lonchitidaceae and Lindsaeaceae. The fossil strengthens the hypothesis that the forest ecosystems of Malesia and Melanesia represent refugia for many tropical plant lineages that originated in the Cretaceous
Publisher Correction: A fossil species of the enigmatic early polypod fern genus Cystodium (Cystodiaceae) in Cretaceous amber from Myanmar
No full textA correction to this article has been published and is linked from the HTML version of this paper. The error has been fixed in the paper.</jats:p
Character evolution of modern eupolypods supports the assignment of the fossil fern Cretacifilix fungiformis to Dryopteridaceae
No full textThe fossil fern species Cretacifilix fungiformis from mid-Cretaceous Kachin amber from Myanmar was previously assigned to eupolypod ferns for having sporangia with a vertical annulus and sporangial stalks 2–3 cells thick, along with monolete spores with a distinct perine. However, due to the insufficient documentation of character states and the unavailability of the holotype, the proposed affiliation of this fossil to derived families of eupolypods required further study. The recent discovery of additional leaf fragments of C. fungiformis from the same amber deposit enabled us to re-evaluate the relationships of this fossil taxon. Newly documented morphological evidence corroborated its placement within the eupolypod ferns. This was achieved by evaluating identifiable features present in the fossil species through an ancestral character state reconstruction utilizing a comprehensive, time-calibrated phylogeny of eupolypod ferns. Our character state reconstruction of extant eupolypod families and genera recovered morphological similarity of Cretacifilix to the closely related genera Arachniodes and Dryopteris, supporting an assignment of this fossil genus to the species-rich family Dryopteridaceae within the Polypodiineae
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