Morphology and the evolution of cycadeoidales

OneCycadeoidea stem one cycadeoidalean gynoecium and a bisporangiate cone attached to a slender cycadeoidalean trunkCycadeoidella japonica Ogura from the Cretaceous of Japan shows well-preserved internal structure that provides evidence for a better understanding of the morphological architecture of the cycadeoidalean plant. Structural details of the cone were confirmed. The ovule has an intergument enclosing a free nucellus and a thin outer envelope. Both reproductive and vegetative structures support the medullosan affinity of Cycadeoidales. The cone is interpreted as a compressed fertile shoot. Axillary cones characterizing some Cretaceous genera such asCycadeoidea andMonanthesia consist of a lateral shoot subtended by a frond that is the first leaf of the cone shoot itself. The origin of axillary buds in the Cycadeoidales is discussed. Heterochrony may have mediated the morphological changes that resulted in the establishment of the Cycadeoidales.