Pinaceous Wood from the Lower Cretaceous (Barremian—Early Aptian) of California, USA; Lower Chickabally Member, Budden Canyon Formation

Abstract

Abstract.The Budden Canyon Formation is a Cretaceous unit spanning the Valanginian—Turonian interval in northern California. This marine unit includes plant-fossiliferous near-shore sequences, with richest plant fossil occurrences in the Hauterivian—Aptian. The Lower Chickabally Member (Barremian—early Aptian, ca. 125 Ma) hosts a rich flora preserved anatomically in carbonate concretions, near the town of Ono. The material is dominated by conifers: wood, foliage, cones and dispersed seeds. We characterize the anatomy of a coniferous trunk. The wood exhibits axial and radial resin canals with thick-walled epithelial cells, distinct growth rings, and conspicuous early to late wood transition. Axial tracheids bear radial uniseriate and opposite biseriate pitting. Rays are uniseriate with biseriate portions, with scarce ray tracheids and taxodioid cross-field pitting. Traumatic resin canals form extensive tangential bands. The axial and radial resin canals indicate pinaceous affinities for the Ono wood, but s...