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Palmately lobed Proteaceae leaf fossils from the middle Eocene of South Australia
journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-18, 03:52 authored by Carpenter, RJ, Hill, RS, Scriven, LJParafatsia subpeltata D. T. Blackburn from the Middle Eocene of Maslin Bay, South Australia, is reinterpreted as belonging to extinct Proteaceae rather than Araliaceae, as originally described. Leaf cuticles of Parafatsia exhibit brachyparacytic stomata and annular trichome bases associated with numerous basal epidermal cells, features that are diagnostically proteaceous. The leaf architecture is unique in Proteaceae in being palmately lobed, with basal actinodromous primary venation. Parafatsia leaves were very large with highly ornamented cuticles. They were presumably derived from evergreen, light-demanding woody plants that evolved in the high-latitude, warm, humid environments of the Southern Hemisphere but subsequently became uncompetitive as Australia drifted into lower latitudes.
History
Publication title
International Journal of Plant SciencesVolume
167Issue
5Pagination
1049-1060ISSN
1058-5893Department/School
School of Natural SciencesPublisher
Univ Chicago PressPlace of publication
1427 E 60Th St, Chicago, USA, Il, 60637-2954Rights statement
Copyright 2006 The University of ChicagoRepository Status
- Restricted