A new species of the marattialean fern Scolecopteris (Zenker) Millay from the uppermost Permian of Guizhou Province, south-western China

Several isolated marattialean synangia and sporangia are reported from coal balls collected from Coal Seam No.1 (C605) in the uppermost Permian Wangjiazhai Formation in Guizhou Province, south-western China. The synangia are radially symmetrical with diameters between 0.8 and 1.2 mm and are 1.7 mm long, consisting of 3–4 elongate sporangia that are fused basally, free distally and possess a pointed apex. The outer-facing sporangial wall is 4–5 cells thick and conspicuously differentiated. Spores are trilete, have a granular ornamentation and are nearly round equatorially with a diameter of 55–60 µm. Comparisons with other anatomically preserved Palaeozoic marattialean synangia from the Euramerican and Cathaysian floras permit their assignment to the genus of Scolecopteris (Zenker) Millay. In this species the thick, outer-facing sporangial walls and large trilete spores are features consistent with those of the Oliveri Group within Scolecopteris , a group that has previously been considered primitive within this genus. Distinctions from all other previously recognized species within the Oliveri Group lead to the creation of a new species, S. guizhouensis sp. nov. This species is the youngest of the reported species of Scolecopteris recognized from the Euramerican and Cathaysian floras, and provides important evidence on the organization of marattialean ferns from the Upper Permian strata of south China.  © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2006, 151 , 279–288.     

A summary of fossil records for Arecaceae

Of all monocotyledons the Arecaceae displays by far the richest fossil record, and there is an extensive literature. The earliest unequivocal fossil palm material probably dates from the early to mid Late Cretaceous (Turonian > Coniacian > Santonian). The records are geographically widespread and comprise a wide range of organs: leaves, cuticles, stems, rhizomes, roots, fruits, seeds, endocarps, rachillae, peduncles, inflorescences, individual flowers and pollen. For some of these organs records are rare while for others, such as leaves, stems and pollen, records are abundant. However, fossil material often lacks sufficient diagnostic detail to allow reasonable association with living palm taxa beyond, or even to, subfamilial level. Nevertheless, many fossil genera and numerous species have been described. A brief survey of palm fossil records is presented, and their taxonomy and morphological limitations are considered. © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2006, 151 , 39–67.     

Comparative floral structure and systematics in Ochnaceae s.l. (Ochnaceae,Quiinaceae and Medusagynaceae; Malpighiales)

Ochnaceae s.l. (Ochnaceae, Quiinaceae and Medusagynaceae), one of the well‐supported subclades of the large order Malpighiales retrieved so far in molecular phylogenetic studies, were comparatively studied with regard to floral structure using microtome section series and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Floral morphology, anatomy and histology also strongly reflect this close relationship. Potential synapomorphies of the subclade include: flowers nectarless, sepals of different sizes within a flower, petals not retarded in development and forming the protective organs of advanced floral buds, petal aestivation contort, petals with three vascular traces, petals reflexed over the sepals and directed toward the pedicel, polystemony, anthers almost or completely basifixed, gynoecium often with more than five carpels, short gynophore present, styles separate for at least their uppermost part and radiating outwards, suction‐cup‐shaped stigmas, vasculature forming a dorsal band of bundles in the upper stylar region, gynoecium epidermis with large, radially elongate cells, ovules either weakly crassinucellar or incompletely tenuinucellar with an endothelium, abundance of tanniferous tissues and sclerenchyma in floral organs. The most strongly supported subclade of two of the three families in molecular analyses, Quiinaceae and Medusagynaceae, is also particularly well supported by floral structural features, including the presence of functionally and morphologically unisexual flowers, a massive thecal septum that persists after anther dehiscence, styles radiating outward from the ovary, two lateral ovules per carpel, positioned one above the other, conspicuous longitudinal ribs on the ovary wall at anthesis, and a ‘false endothelium’ on the nucellus at anthesis. Additionally, the group fits well in Malpighiales and further emphasizes the relationship of Malpighiales with Celastrales and Oxalidales, and thus the unity of the COM clade. © 2012 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2012, 170 , 299–392.     

The Piltdown forgery: a re-statement of the case against Hinton

A review of the evidence supports the conclusion reached by Gardiner and Currant in 1996 that the hoaxer was Martin Hinton, who worked in the Geology and Zoology Departments of the Natural History Museum throughout the Piltdown affair. This was based primarily on the discovery in 1978 of a cabin trunk in the loft space immediately above what had been the office of the Keeper of Zoology − which post Hinton occupied between 1936 and 1945. This contained material similarly stained to that discovered at Piltdown, while several of the pieces had also been whittled in an identical fashion to the last find at Piltdown – the notorious 'cricket bat'. Additional proof came from Hinton's executor who discovered eight human teeth varyingly stained in a tobacco tin of Hinton's. These revealed that the forger used two methods for staining his material, one of which involved decalcification, a process which converted apatite into gypsum, the other of which did not. The material in the trunk was stained using the first method, the teeth obtained from his executor, the second. The analyses of the contents of the trunk (carried out in 1995−6) and of the tobacco tin (1997−8) are reported for the first time.  © 2003 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2003, 139 , 315−335.     

16S mitochondrial sequences associate morphologically dissimilar males and females of the family Phoridae (Diptera)

The genus Phora (Diptera, Phoridae) includes more than 50 species widely distributed in temperate regions of Eurasia and Africa. Taxonomic identification of most species is based upon the morphology of the male hypopygium: hence for many species, including the type species of the genus, females are unknown. We used mitochondrial 16S ribosomal RNA sequences to match males with previously unidentified females from Phora atra , P. stictica , and P. holosericea . We then identified morphological characters that allow identification of females of P. atra and P. stictica without recourse to DNA sequencing. Our results show that small scale sequencing can aid in the development of taxonomic characters for use in the field to identify previously cryptic females. This iterative method of identifying populations genetically followed by re-examination of morphology should allow development of better keys for rapid identification of heretofore cryptic populations of insects. We also found that sequences from individual of P. holosericea from Cambridge, England and Malakhovka, Russia, were more similar to each other than to sequences from a conspecific fly also collected in Cambridge. This result suggests that there is previously un-suspected population structuring in this species.  © 2002 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2002, 77 , 267–273.     

New taxa of Japanese and New Zealand Eurystomellidae (Phylum Bryozoa) and their phylogenetic relationships

As presently recognized, the small cheilostome bryozoan family Eurystomellidae (superfamily Catenicelloidea) comprises just two genera: Eurystomella Levinsen, 1909 , with three Recent species, and Selenariopsis Maplestone, 1913 ; with one Recent and two fossil species. Within Eurystomella sensu lato , colonies range from uni-/biserial to multiserial and the smooth gymnocystal frontal shields of zooids may be entire or have one to several large foramina. Here we describe seven new Recent species of encrusting eurystomellids from New Zealand and Japan. Including species of Selenariopsis , a cladistic analysis was carried out on 11 eurystomellid species and five outgroup species, the latter representing the families Cribrilinidae, Euthyroididae, Petalostegidae, and Catenicellidae. The results of the analysis support restricting Eurystomella to multiserial species with large frontal foramina, median suboral sutures, and basal pore-chambers. Two new genera, both with imperforate frontal shields and uniporous mural septula, are segregated from Eurystomella : uni-/biserial Zygopalme , with a median suboral suture and accssory perforations in the ovicellular kenozooid, and multiserial Integripelta , lacking the suture and accessory perforations.  © 2002 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2002, 136 , 199–216.