Abstract
Several specimens of a new fungal reproductive unit, Halifaxia taylorii nov. gen. et spec., occur within the tracheids of a structurally preserved fern axis from the Lower Pennsylvanian of Great Britain. The reproductive units, which appear to be lateral outgrowths of tubular hyphae, consist of a mantled sphere (80–90 μm in diameter) borne terminally on an inflated subtending structure, which may also be mantled. A smaller element clasps the proximal portion of the subtending structure; one arm of this element extends further up along and appears to eventually fuse laterally with the subtending structure. The reproductive units are interpreted as zygosporangium-apposed gametangia complexes of a zygomycetous fungus. Although several structural features of H. taylorii resemble features seen in the zygosporangium-gametangia complexes of certain modern zygomycetes, the precise systematic affinities of the fossils remain unresolved. Nevertheless, the discovery is important because it provides new information o...
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