An early infructescence Hyrcantha decussata (comb. nov.) from the Yixian Formation in northeastern China
- *Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611;
- ‡Research Center of Paleontology, Jilin University, Changchun 130026, China;
- §Geological Institute of Chinese Academy of Geosciences, Beijing 100037, China; and
- ¶Department of Biology, Frostburg State University, Frostburg, MD 21532
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Contributed by David L. Dilcher, April 16, 2007 (received for review November 10, 2006)
Abstract
The continuing study of early angiosperms from the Yixian Formation (≈125 Ma) of northeastern China has yielded a second early angiosperm genus. This report is a detailed account of this early flowering plant and recognizes earlier reports of similar fossils from Russia and China. Entire plants, including roots, stems, and branches terminating in fruits are presented and reconstructed. Evidence for a possible aquatic nature of this plant is presented. The relationship of Hyrcantha (“Sinocarpus”) to the eudicots is discussed. The presence of this second early angiosperm genus, now known as a whole plant, is important in the discussion of its systematics and the ecology of the earliest angiosperms.
Footnotes
- †To whom correspondence may be addressed. E-mail: dilcher{at}flmnh.ufl.edu or sunge{at}jlu.edu.cn
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Author contributions: D.L.D. and G.S. designed research; D.L.D., G.S., and H.L. performed research; Q.J. contributed new reagents/analytic tools; D.L.D. and H.L. analyzed data; D.L.D. and G.S. wrote the paper; and Q.J. supplied the fossil material analyzed in this project.
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The authors declare no conflict of interest.
- © 2007 by The National Academy of Sciences of the USA
