Early Oligocene fruits and leaves of Burretiodendron (Malvaceae s.l.) from South China

The genus Burretiodendron Rehder is currently endemic to an area near the China–Vietnam border and the limestone mountains of Thailand and Myanmar. The fossil records of this genus were previously found only from the Miocene of Yunnan, Southwest China, and the Oligocene of Guangxi, South China. Here, we describe fossil fruits and associated leaves of Burretiodendron, which were discovered in the lower Oligocene Shangcun Formation of the Maoming Basin, Guangdong, South China. Morphological comparison with extant and fossil Burretiodendron taxa indicates that fruit fossils belong to the species Burretiodendron parvifructum J. Lebreton Anberrée & Z. K. Zhou. This is one of the earliest fossil records of the genus, providing additional evidence for the early biogeographic history of this genus and supporting the inference that the genus originated in South China. According to the habitat conditions of modern species, we speculate that there were limestone mountains around the Maoming Basin in the early Oligocene.     

Early Oligocene Calocedrus (Cupressaceae) from the Maoming Basin,South China,and its paleogeographic and paleoclimatic implications

The genus Calocedrus Kurz is characterized by flattened branches covered with decussate and dimorphic leaves. In this study, we describe fossil foliage of Calocedrus discovered in the Shangcun Formation (early Oligocene) of the Maoming Basin, South China. The fossils have wedge‐shaped branchlet segments and scale‐like strongly dimorphic leaves, similar to the fossil species Calocedrus lantenoisi (Laurent) Tao. There have been no detailed studies of the morphological features and cuticle structures of C. lantenoisi. Therefore, a newly emended diagnosis of the species C. lantenoisi is given based on a detailed study of leaf morphology and cuticular characters exhibited by the Maoming fossils. This is one of the earliest fossil records of Calocedrus in the world, providing additional evidence for the early biogeographic history of this genus and supporting the inference that eastern Asian Calocedrus is primitive among all the living species. The extant species of Calocedrus are mainly distributed in mountainous regions. On the basis of the “nearest living relative” analysis, we propose that the Maoming Basin was adjacent to a mountainous region during the early Oligocene.     

An early Oligocene fossil acorn,associated leaves and pollen of the ring‐cupped oaks (Quercus subg. Cyclobalanopsis) from Maoming Basin,South China

The ring‐cupped oaks (Quercus subg. Cyclobalanopsis) characterized by united and concentric ring‐cupped acorns, are mainly distributed in broad‐leaved evergreen forests in tropical and subtropical regions of East and Southeast Asia. Their geological history has been traced from the middle Eocene to Pleistocene. Most reports of the subgenus have been on the basis of leaves, whereas the acorns or cupules, more valuable evidence for the inter‐ and intrageneric classifications, have been relatively poorly documented. Here, we describe a new species, Quercus shangcunensis sp. nov., based on a ring‐cupped fossil acorn and pollen on the acorn, as well as Quercus sp. associated leaves, recovered from the early Oligocene Shangcun Formation of Maoming Basin, Guangdong Province, South China. The morphological and anatomical structures of these fossils confirm their attribution to the subg. Cyclobalanopsis. Quercus shangcunensis sp. nov. represents the world's first Oligocene fossil acorn and the earliest fossil acorn in China for the subgenus, indicating that the subg. Cyclobalanopsis arrived in the low latitude area of South China at least by the early Oligocene. Our fossil provides evidence that the subgenus was present in one of its modern distribution centers in the Oligocene, suggesting that the modern distribution patterns of the subg. Cyclobalanopsis most likely originated during or prior to the Oligocene.     

Mummified Magnoliaceae woods from the upper Oligocene of South China,with biogeography,paleoecology, and wood trait evolution implications

In this paper, we describe a new species Magnolia nanningensis sp. nov., based on exceptionally well‐preserved mummified fossil woods from the late Oligocene of the Nanning Basin, Guangxi, South China. The features of these woods indicate a close affinity to the section Michelia of the subgenus Yulania belonging to the genus Magnolia sensu lato (Magnoliaceae). Magnolia nanningensis is the first fossil record of the section Michelia from China, the modern diversity center of this group. These mummified woods provide fossil evidence supporting molecular dating that estimated an Oligocene age for divergence of the tropical evergreen section Michelia and the temperate deciduous section Yulania. Helical thickenings on vessel walls and a high degree of vessel grouping found in these fossil woods could be adaptive to temporary, possibly seasonal, droughts and, as suggested by other woods from the Nanning Basin, could be indicative of a monsoon‐influenced tropical climate in Guangxi during the late Oligocene. Helical thickenings have not been reported in magnoliaceous fossil woods prior to the Oligocene. The appearance of this trait was presumably a response to abrupt climate cooling near the Eocene–Oligocene boundary, followed by increase in climate seasonality. The associated increase of latitudinal zonation might be a possible trigger for divergence between the tropical evergreen sect. Michelia and the temperate deciduous sect. Yulania.     

华南地区新生代木乃伊化木化石研究进展*

中国木化石资源虽然很丰富, 但研究程度相比叶片化石要低得多, 且主要集中在中国北部和西南地区, 研究领域大多局限于分类学方面, 而木化石分析与古气候、古生态等领域的交叉和系统研究还很少。大多数情况下木化石的保存方式都为石化或矿化保存, 而木乃伊化保存的木化石则非常罕见。木乃伊化保存的化石在植物分类、系统演化及古气候研究等方面具有独特而重要的价值。近年来, 本团队在华南地区发现大量木乃伊化保存的新生代木化石, 它们分别产自广西南宁盆地晚渐新世邕宁组、广西桂平盆地中新世二子塘组以及广东茂名盆地晚更新世地层中。本文总结了这些木乃伊化保存的木化石的研究进展, 包括多样性组成、古植被、古气候及古生态等特征, 并对木兰属、蒲桃属和枫香属的植物地理史进行了讨论。综合分析植物群组成特征和木材生长轮以及木化石中具有气候指示意义的解剖结构特征, 推测广西南宁盆地晚渐新世时期生长着常绿(少数落叶)阔叶林, 为温暖湿润的亚热带季节性气候; 广西桂平盆地中新世时期生长着常绿—落叶、阔叶—针叶混交林 (阔叶为主), 为温暖湿润的亚热带气候; 广东茂名盆地晚更新世生长着常绿—落叶、阔叶—针叶混交林, 为温暖湿润的亚热带至热带季风气候。这是中国低纬度地区首次系统研究木乃伊化保存的木化石, 为新生代植物群的系统演化和古环境分析等提供了重要的木化石依据。     

Fossil pinnae,sporangia, and spores of Osmunda from the Eocene of South China and their implications for biogeography and paleoecology

The genus Osmunda L. contains approximately 10 extant species widely distributed in tropical and temperate regions, with the greatest concentration of species in East and Southeast Asia. Osmunda is characterized by dimorphic or commonly hemidimorphic fronds with dimorphic pinnae. Its geological history has been traced back to the Triassic. Most records of the genus are based on rhizomes and rarely on pinnae bearing sporangia and spores. Here, we describe fossil pinnae, sporangia, and spores of Osmunda lignitum (Giebel) Stur recovered from the middle Eocene of the Changchang Formation in the Changchang Basin, Hainan Island and the Youganwo Formation in the Maoming Basin, Guangdong, South China. The fossils closely resemble the extant Osmunda banksiifolia (C. Presl) Kuhn of the subgenus Plenasium on the basis of their morphological and anatomical structures. The present occurrence of O. lignitum indicates subg. Plenasium flourished and extended from the high latitude regions such as Northeast China to the low latitude areas of South China during the middle Eocene. Large numbers of specimens described here also indicate that Osmunda was the dominant understory fern element beneath mixed evergreen broad-leaf angiosperm and gymnosperm forests living in a warm and humid environment.     

Fossil callimothalloid fungi: Revised taxonomy,modern equivalents and palaeoecology

This paper presents the reinterpretation of the taxonomic position of fossil epiphyllous callimothalloid fungi belonging to the fossil-genera Callimothallus (hitherto classified to the family Microthyriaceae) and Cribrites (?Microthyriales). These fungi thrived from the Late Cretaceous up to the Holocene. Investigation are based on collected material from the Oligocene of Hungary and the Miocene of Poland and on published data. For the common callimothalloid fungus Callimothallus pertusus, a new combination Neomycoleptodiscus pertusus is proposed. Callimothallus quilonensis is assigned to a new fossil-genus Muyocopromyces as a new combination Muyocopromyces quilonensis. We reconsider the fossil-species Ratnagiriathyrites hexagonalis as a younger synonym of the fossil-genus Cribrites. The geographical range of fossil callimothalloid fungi and their recent counterparts are discussed. Fossil Neomycoleptodiscus, Muyocopromyces, and Cribrites are proposed as reliable climate proxy of warm climate conditions in the past.     

Mummified fossil of Keteleeria from the Late Pleistocene of Maoming Basin,South China,and its phytogeographical and paleoecological implications

Keteleeria is a small genus of Pinaceae now mainly restricted to eastern Asia. Although this genus has been documented with a wide distribution in the geologic record of Europe, North America, and Asia, its history in low‐latitude areas (including South China) has remained obscure. In this paper, a fossil wood of Keteleeria sp. is described from the Late Pleistocene (29–27 ka BP) of the Maoming Basin, South China. This wood is the most ancient megafossil evidence of Keteleeria within the modern distribution area of this genus. The fossil records of Keteleeria suggests that this thermophyllous genus migrated into South China by the Middle Pleistocene escaping from glacial cooling and became widespread over this region in the Late Pleistocene beginning from the interglacial stage preceding the Last Glacial Maximum. The analysis of growth rings in the fossil wood and its comparison with those of modern Keteleeria davidiana (Bertrand) Beissner indicates that in the Late Pleistocene of Maoming Basin (29–27 ka BP) there was a humid climate with less pronounced seasonality of precipitation than that seen in the subtropical monsoonal climate of modern northeastern Vietnam. Apparently, the Maoming Basin was influenced by interglacial regime with summer–monsoon circulation. The previously proposed method to distinguish between evergreen and deciduous conifers based on growth ring anatomy, is not reliable because of the wide variance and ambiguity in its results.     

First macrofossil record of Icacinaceae in East Asia (early Oligocene,Wenshan Basin) and its ecological implications

Icacinaceae are well represented in the modern tropical flora of East Asia, but this family has no confirmed macrofossils from this region. Most of the unambiguous fossils (e.g., endocarps) are from the Paleogene of North America and Europe, where the family is no longer present. Here we report a fossil endocarp of the liana genus Iodes from the Oligocene Wenshan flora, southwestern China. The fossil is relatively large (ca. 20 mm length, 11 mm width) and documents a vascular bundle inside the endocarp wall, a pattern of ridges enclosing few areoles, and an asymmetrical apex and rounded base. On the basis of these characteristics, we described a new species, Iodes elliptica, which represents the first Icacinaceae fruit fossil record from Asia. This fossil, consistent with recent reports of Iodes pollen from the Eocene of Hainan, indicates a long-standing presence of the genus in SE Asia, dating back to the Paleogene. Based on the climatic data of modern Iodes, and other fossil occurrences from Wenshan, we hypothesize that the climate in the region was subtropical during the Oligocene, supporting a rainforest, with an overall mixed regional flora of subtropical and tropical elements.     

A new species of Liquidambar (Altingiaceae) from the late Eocene of South China

Journal of Plant Research - A new fossil leaf species, Liquidambar bella (Altingiaceae), is described from the lower part of the Eocene Huangniuling Formation, Maoming Basin, South China....     

First fossil fruits of Elaeocarpus (Elaeocarpaceae) in East Asia: Implications for phytogeography and paleoecology

The genus Elaeocarpus contains approximately 360 species and occurs in mesic forest communities from India, through to China, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia, and New Caledonia. Elaeocarpus fossils are best known from the Eocene to the Miocene of Australia and the late Pliocene–early Pleistocene of India, but have not been documented from East Asia before. Here we describe six new species of Elaeocarpus, E. nanningensis sp. nov. from the late Oligocene Yongning Formation of the Nanning Basin, E. presikkimensis sp. nov. from the Miocene Erzitang Formation of the Guiping Basin, E. prerugosus sp. nov., E. prelacunosus sp. nov., E. preserratus sp. nov., and E. preprunifolioides sp. nov. from the late Miocene Foluo Formation of the Nankang Basin in Guangxi, South China. This is the first reliable report for the genus occurring in East Asia, and the fossils indicate that Elaeocarpus had colonized this region by the late Oligocene and represented by a morphologically diverse group of species by the late Miocene. This sheds new insights into the timing and migration patterns of the genus in East Asia. Elaeocarpus is typically a rainforest genus occurring in mesic forests. Based on the habitat of their morphologically similar modern relatives we propose that these three sedimentary basins were warm and wet adjacent to mountainous regions with the evergreen or rain forests during the late Oligocene to Miocene.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Camellia nanningensis</Emphasis> sp. nov.: the earliest fossil wood record of the genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Camellia</Emphasis> (Theaceae) from East Asia

A new species Camellia nanningensis was described on the basis of well-preserved mummified wood from the upper Oligocene Yongning Formation of Nanning Basin in Guangxi Province, South China. This represents the most ancient fossil wood assigned to Camellia, and the earliest fossil record of the family Theaceae in China. This fossil material shows that Camellia occurred in China as early as the late Oligocene, suggesting more ancient radiation of this genus than estimated by molecular dating.     

Diversity of Menispermaceae from the Paleocene and Eocene of South China

We present here the earliest known Asian fossil records of the Menispermaceae based on fossil fruits from Paleocene and Eocene localities in South China. A new genus and species, Paleoorbicarpum parvum sp. nov., and two new species of Stephania Loureiro, S. ornamenta sp. nov. and S. geniculata sp. nov., are recognized from Paleocene deposits of the Sanshui Basin, Guangdong, and a new occurrence of the widespread Eocene species Stephania auriformis (Hollick) Han & Manchester is recognized from the Maoming Basin, Guangdong. The Paleocene Stephania specimens described here represent the earliest fossil endocarp record of the Menispermaceae in eastern Asia. This discovery shows that the moonseed family had arrived in tropical and humid South China by at least the middle Paleocene, which provides important evidence for the origin and phytogeographic history of the family.     

Fossil involucres of Ostrya (Betulaceae) from the early Oligocene of Yunnan and their biogeographic implications

A new fossil occurrence of Ostrya (Betulaceae) is reported based on 14 involucre impressions from the lower Oligocene of Löhe Basin, Yunnan Province, Southwest China. They are characterized by their bladder-like shape with longitudinal veins and perpendicular or branched intercostal veins that form a reticulate venation. The discovery of these fossil involucres represents the earliest unequivocal fossil record of Ostrya in East Asia and the record at the lowest latitude. Its fossil history suggests that the modern distribution pattern of Ostrya might have been established since the early Oligocene, and that this genus has inhabited low altitude areas since then.     

Liverwort fossils from the Late Triassic of Baiyin City,Gansu Province,and their geological significance

Although liverworts are widely distributed around the world with a large number of extant species, reliable fossil records are relatively rare. Here, we report a new species, Ricciopsis baojishanensis Han and Yan, n. sp. (Ricciaceae) and an unnamed species, Hepaticites sp. from the Late Triassic Nanying’er Formation in Baojishan Basin, Baiyin City, Gansu Province, Northwest China. The generic designation is based on detailed comparison of the gross morphology with related fossil and extant species. The new species is characterized by its rosette-forming thallus, dichotomous branching, ribbon-like segments and entire margins. The current fossils represent the first record of liverwort from the Late Triassic in Baojishan Basin, Gansu Province. Based on the different fossil records of the Ricciaceae, we suggest that these taxa were widely distributed during Late Triassic to Oligocene worldwide, mainly in warm temperate and tropical environments, similar with their current distribution. The discovery of the present fossils indicates that the climate of Baojishan Basin in Late Triassic is warmer and more humid than that of today.     

钱江源国家公园叶附生苔类植物的物种多样性

本文报道钱江源国家公园叶附生苔类植物4科9属19种, 较之前记录增加3科8属17种。与钱江源处于同纬度的我国其他地区相比, 钱江源叶附生苔类植物的种数仅次于西藏墨脱, 排名第二。鳞叶疣鳞苔(Cololejeunea longifolia)和尖叶薄鳞苔(Leptolejeunea subacuta)是钱江源国家公园最常见的2种叶附生苔类植物。丰富的叶附生苔类植物表明钱江源国家公园具有较合适的叶附生苔类植物生长环境, 这可能与该地区长期有效的保护密切相关。     

A new species of Zelkova (Ulmaceae,Ulmoideae) with leaves and fruits from the Oligocene of South China and its biogeographical implications

A new fossil species of Zelkova is described from the Oligocene Ningming Formation of Guangxi, South China. Zelkova ningmingensis sp. nov. is characterized by leaves with craspedodromous venation pattern and drupaceous fruit type. The new species possesses elliptical to ovate leaves, bearing 7–12 pairs of secondary and simple toothed margin, as well as epidermal cells with straight or rounded anticlinal walls. The species is compared with extant and other fossil species hitherto reported of the genus. It is most similar to the living Zelkova schneideriana in the leaf gross morphology and epidermal characters, which may be suggested to be the ancestral type of Zelkova schneideriana. The discovery of Zelkova ningmingensis sp. nov. in Guangxi indicates that Zelkova has already existed in southern China as early as the Oligocene. In combination with Zelkova material from the Oligocene of Europe, it can be inferred that Eurasian Zelkova had begun to diversify by at least the Oligocene. Because China is the biodiversity centre of modern Zelkova, the fossil herein provides new insights into Zelkova biogeography.     

柴达木盆地渐新世的鲤科鱼类化石

记述了首次发现于柴达木盆地早渐新世晚期至晚渐新世早期(距今27～29 Ma)的鲤科鱼类化石。材料包括咽骨、咽齿、匙骨、腹鳍骨及一些零散的鳍条。咽骨及咽齿化石与原始鲃亚科鱼类及裂腹鱼亚科裂腹鱼属鱼类的相似;腹鳍骨化石与原始鲃亚科鱼类的更相似。鲃亚科鱼类现今分布于北纬35°以南的亚洲、欧洲南部及非洲北部;裂腹鱼属鱼类分布局限于青藏高原东、南、西面的边缘区域,在柴达木盆地没有分布。柴达木盆地水系现生鱼类仅见适于高寒环境的高度特化等级的裂腹鱼亚科鱼类及鳅科高原鳅属鱼类,鱼类组成与早渐新世晚期至晚渐新世早期的不尽相同。     

广西南宁渐新世基于咽齿的鲤亚科一新属

记述了产自广西南宁盆地渐新世早—中期的鲤科鲤亚科一新属种——伍氏南宁鲤(+Nanningocyprinus wui gen.et sp.nov).化石材料包括一些咽喉骨和咽齿.这些咽喉骨和咽齿的以下特征组合明显不同于其他鲤科鱼类:齿式-3·2·1,主行第一枚咽齿大小是第二枚的3～4倍,第二枚咽齿及第二行第一枚咽齿咀嚼面上各仅有一条沟纹,咽骨前角很发育.该属种的发现进一步证明鲤亚科是鲤科中较早的分支,中国南方很有可能是鲤亚科的起源和分化中心.     

A fossil heron from the early Oligocene of Belgium: the earliest temporally well‐constrained record of the Ardeidae

We describe the earliest temporally well‐constrained fossil that can be assigned to the Ardeidae (herons), from the lowermost Oligocene (32.0–33.0 million years ago) of Belgium. The specimen, a partial tarsometatarsus, belongs to a small species and is described as Proardea? deschutteri n. sp. It exhibits the characteristic tarsometatarsus morphology found in extant heron species, but a confident assignment to one of the ardeid subclades is not possible and even the assignment of the new fossil species to the crown group (the clade including the extant species) cannot be established. The fossil indicates a divergence of herons from their sister taxon by at least the earliest Oligocene, and current paleontological data suggest that herons arrived in Europe shortly after a major faunal turnover at the Eocene/Oligocene boundary. We consider that dispersal is the likely reason for the sudden appearance of herons in the earliest Oligocene of Europe but it is uncertain from where exactly this took place, with Asia and Africa being among the candidate areas.