Coryphoid Palms Research Articles

Coryphoid palms from the K-Pg boundary of central India and their biogeographical implications: Evidence from megafossil remains

Ten palm leaf impressions are documented from the latest Maastrichtian (late Cretaceous) to early Danian (earliest Paleocene) sediments (K-Pg, c. 66–64 Ma) of the Mandla Lobe of the Deccan Inter-trappean Beds, Madhya Pradesh, central India. The palmate leaf shape along with a definite well-preserved costa support their placement in the subfamily Coryphoideae of the family Arecaceae. We place all recovered palm leaf specimens in the fossil genus Sabalites, report seven species of coryphoid palms and describe two new species namely, Sabalities umariaensis sp. nov. and Sabalites ghughuaensis sp. nov. The fossils indicate that coryphoid palms were highly diverse in central India by the latest Cretaceous. These and earlier reported coryphoid palm fossils from the same locality indicate that they experienced a warm and humid tropical environment during the time of deposition. These discoveries confirm the presence of a diversity of Coryphoideae in Gondwana prior to the India-Eurasia collision and provide information about coryphoid biogeographical history over geological time. Based on megafossil remains, we trace coryphoid palm migration pathways from India to mainland Southeast (SE) Asia and other parts of Asia after the docking of the Indian subcontinent with Eurasia early in the Paleogene.

Seed traits linked to differential survival of plants during the Cretaceous/Paleogene impact winter

In past investigations the pattern of differential survival of plants across the K/Pg boundary has been viewed as incompatible with severe asteroid impact winter scenarios (i.e., an impact winter lasting more than a few months), particularly the enigmatic survival of coryphoid palms and Pandanus (screw pine). Stateof- the-art climate models based on soot, sulfate and nano-sized dust aerosols predict a global impact winter that drastically reduced precipitation and resulted in a transient period of total darkness and permafrost conditions. This suggests that the plants most likely to have been affected by the global mass-extinction event were tropical phanerophytes that produce recalcitrant seeds, which by definition are desiccation-intolerant, survive less than a year, and cannot survive freezing. However, this hypothesis has never been tested. In this study I sampled over 100 plant species from the global fossil record that have a high probability of having produced either recalcitrant seeds/disseminules (n1 = 58) or orthodox seeds (n2 = 59), based on their phylogenetic relationships with extant taxa that either are monomorphic for these traits or specifically exhibit a genetic marker for abscisic acid inhibition associated with seed dormancy and recalcitrance. A one-tailed z-test for the difference between two proportions revealed that plant taxa with a high probability of having produced recalcitrant seeds had significantly lower survivorship than plant taxa with a high probability of having produced orthodox seeds (p < 0.0001). Based on these data, it can be concluded that plants which formed a frost-tolerant seed bank during the latest Maastrichtian were significantly more likely to survive the K/Pg impact winter than plants which did not (including palms). These data clearly indicate that the K/Pg impact winter probably lasted longer than a year and that it selected for seed-based traits that effectively sorted correlated functional traits of mature plants (i.e., leaf physiognomic features). This novel hypothesis stands as an alternative to J.A. Wolfe’s classic hypothesis that a mild K/Pg impact winter selected for fast-growing angiosperms with deciduous leaves and did not affect the plant communities of the Southern Hemisphere. Potential mechanisms for the rare survival of tropical, recalcitrant-seeded plants are discussed.

A new coryphoid costapalmate palm leaf from the Maastrichtian-Danian of India

ABSTRACT Here, we describe a new impressed palm frond from the latest Maastrichtian (late Cretaceous)-earliest Danian (early Palaeocene) sediments of the Deccan Intertrappean beds of Madhya Pradesh, Central India. The diagnostic characters of the recovered fossil specimen are large palmate fan-shaped leaf with well-preserved long costa (costapalmate), plicate, connate leaf segments with prominent mid-vein emerging at an acute angle from costa and parallel secondary lateral veins on either side of mid-vein. The aforesaid leaf morphological features of the Cretaceous specimen suggest its resemblance with those of modern members of the fan palm sub-family Coryphoideae in the Arecaceae. We recognize it as a new species, Sabalites karondiensis Roy, Hazra T et Khan, sp. nov. The present-day distribution of the comparable modern form of above taxon indicates that coryphoid palms may prefer a warm and humid tropical environment during the deposition.

Fossil Coryphoid Palms from the Eocene of Vancouver, British Columbia

Premise of research. Fossil fan palm fronds are well known from Eocene sites in the United States; however, although they are also known from the Paleogene Huntingdon Formation of British Columbia for over 100 years, these are poorly studied. There are early anecdotal reports of Eocene “Sabal” or Sabalites leaves from the Vancouver area, pollen from Vancouver and the interior of British Columbia, and a single megafossil palm described from the Princeton Chert, indicating past warm climates in the region. Leaves of coryphoid palms (Arecaceae) from British Columbia are described formally here for the first time.Methodology. We analyze morphologically the Eocene palm frond fossils from the Vancouver area (Huntingdon Formation) and the Ashcroft area in British Columbia.Pivotal results. The Sabalites fossil fronds from the Vancouver area represent fan palms (subfamily Coryphoideae, cf. tribe Sabaleae) and are assigned to the new taxon Sabalites dawsonii. These and other Eocene palm fossils from the Pacific Northwest demonstrate that—based on prior paleoclimate analyses—coryphoid palms were growing under paleotemperatures close to their modern cold limits. Palm fossils reported from near Ashcroft are not Arecaceae, as key diagnostic characters are absent.Conclusions. These and comparable palm fossil records, coupled with analyses of paleoclimate, corroborate an early Paleogene origin of temperate climate adaptation by Coryphoideae, likely as part of the initial Sabaleae and Trachycarpeae diversifications.

An Eocene tar spot on a fossil palm and its fungal hyperparasite

Two ascomycetes from the middle Eocene (48.7 million yr b.p.) Princeton chert are described. Palaeoserenomyces allenbyensis gen. et sp. nov. consists of long, loculate stromata of distinctive columnar cells beneath the epidermis of the extinct fan palm, Uhlia allenbyensis. The sporogenous locules are emp- ty but stromatal features and locule shape are similar to extant Serenomyces, a genus in the Phyllachorales that forms leaf spots on coryphoid palms. The locules of P allenbyensis contain circular structures that are interpreted as intralocular ascomata of a mycoparas- ite, Cryptodidymosphaerites princetonensis gen. et sp. nov. Two-celled ascospores in uniseriate rows are sim- ilar to the genus Didymosphaeria of the Melanom- matales. These fossils are compared to Didymosphaer- ia conoidea, an extant mycoparasite of stromatic as- comycetes. The large number of exquisitely pre- served fungal structures on taxonomically defined hosts in the Princeton chert provides a unique op-

Coryphoid palms from the Oligocene of China and their biogeographical implications

Fossil palm leaves from the Oligocene deposits in Ningming County, Guangxi, China, have been reported for the first time. The palmate leaf shape along with a definite costa support the placement of the fossils in the Coryphoideae. Three new species are described: Chuniophoenix slenderifolia sp. nov., Livistona roundifolia sp. nov. and Trachycarpus formosa sp. nov. The palm fossils belong to three taxa and indicate that palms in southern China began to diversify no later than the Oligocene and that a diversified palm flora was already present at that time in Guangxi. This report provides new information about the biogeographical history of Chinese palms over geological time.

Coryphoid palm leaf fossils from the Maastrichtian-Danian of Central India with remarks on phytogeography of the Coryphoideae (Arecaceae).

Premise of researchA large number of fossil coryphoid palm wood and fruits have been reported from the Deccan Intertrappean beds of India. We document the oldest well-preserved and very rare costapalmate palm leaves and inflorescence like structures from the same horizon.MethodologyA number of specimens were collected from Maastrichtian–Danian sediments of the Deccan Intertrappean beds, Ghughua, near Umaria, Dindori District, Madhya Pradesh, India. The specimens are compared with modern and fossil taxa of the family Arecaceae.Pivotal results Sabalites dindoriensis sp. nov. is described based on fossil leaf specimens including basal to apical parts. These are the oldest coryphoid fossil palm leaves from India as well as, at the time of deposition, from the Gondwana- derived continents.ConclusionsThe fossil record of coryphoid palm leaves presented here and reported from the Eurasian localities suggests that this is the oldest record of coryphoid palm leaves from India and also from the Gondwana- derived continents suggesting that the coryphoid palms were well established and wide spread on both northern and southern hemispheres by the Maastrichtian–Danian. The coryphoid palms probably dispersed into India from Europe via Africa during the latest Cretaceous long before the Indian Plate collided with the Eurasian Plate.

New coryphoid fossil palm leaves (Arecaceae: Coryphoideae) from the Eocene Changchang Basin of Hainan Island, South China

Modern palms are diverse and widespread in the tropics and subtropics, especially the tropical rainforests. However, most fossil palm records have been reported from regions of relatively higher latitude. In this paper seven species of coryphoid palm from the Eocene Changchang Basin of Hainan Island of South China are reported. These are Sabalites asymmetricus sp. nov., S. robustus sp. nov., S. tenufolius sp. nov., S. szei Guo, S. changchagnensis Guo, Livistona sp., and Amesoneuron sp. According to leaf morphological characteristics, they can be classified as members of the subfamily Coryphoideae. In extant flora of Hainan Island, only three species of Livistona have costapalmate leaves. These palm fossils indicate that, during the Eocene, flora in Hainan Island included a diversity of coryphoid palms, which have some bearings on the reconstruction of the palaeoclimate of South China.

Comparative Gynoecium Structure and Multiple Origins of Apocarpy in Coryphoid Palms (Arecaceae)

Abstract Within palms, recent phylogenetic evidence suggests that the free-carpellate (apocarpous) condition that occurs in mature gynoecia of some species represents a derived condition, in contrast to traditional views. This article examines the comparative morphology and ontogeny of several palm genera representing a broad phylogenetic range within the diverse subfamily Coryphoideae (Arecaceae/Palmae). The resulting data are optimized onto a recent supertree phylogeny to clarify the evolutionary history of gynoecial characters within Coryphoideae. The investigation shows that coryphoid palms possess unusually diverse gynoecium morphology, especially with respect to carpel fusion, nectary presence, and nectary location. Our observations indicate three evolutionary transitions within Coryphoideae to a free-carpellate condition (apocarpy): in Cryosophileae, Phoeniceae, and subtribe Rhapidinae of Trachycarpeae. All three groups of apocarpous coryphoids appear to lack gynoecial nectaries, even at the ovary ...

An Eocene tar spot on a fossil palm and its fungal hyperparasite

Two ascomycetes from the middle Eocene (48.7 million yr b.p.) Princeton chert are described. Palaeoserenomyces allenbyensis gen. et sp. nov. consists of long, loculate stromata of distinctive columnar cells beneath the epidermis of the extinct fan palm, Uhlia allenbyensis. The sporogenous locules are empty but stromatal features and locule shape are similar to extant Serenomyces, a genus in the Phyllachorales that forms leaf spots on coryphoid palms. The locules of P. allenbyensis contain circular structures that are interpreted as intralocular ascomata of a mycoparas- ite, Cryptodidymosphaerites princetonensis gen. et sp. nov. Two-celled ascospores in uniseriate rows are similar to the genus Didymosphaeria of the Melanom-matales. These fossils are compared to Didymosphaeria conoidea, an extant mycoparasite of stromatic ascomycetes. The large number of exquisitely preserved fungal structures on taxonomically defined hosts in the Princeton chert provides a unique opportunity for studying the diversity of microfungi in Tertiary paleoenvironments.

An Eocene Tar Spot on a Fossil Palm and Its Fungal Hyperparasite

Two ascomycetes from the middle Eocene (48.7 million yr b.p.) Princeton chert are described. Palaeoserenomyces allenbyensis gen. et sp. nov. consists of long, loculate stromata of distinctive columnar cells beneath the epidermis of the extinct fan palm, Uhlia allenbyensis. The sporogenous locules are empty but stromatal features and locule shape are similar to extant Serenomyces, a genus in the Phyllachorales that forms leaf spots on coryphoid palms. The locules of P. allenbyensis contain circular structures that are interpreted as intralocular ascomata of a mycoparas- ite, Cryptodidymosphaerites princetonensis gen. et sp. nov. Two-celled ascospores in uniseriate rows are similar to the genus Didymosphaeria of the Melanom-matales. These fossils are compared to Didymosphaeria conoidea, an extant mycoparasite of stromatic ascomycetes. The large number of exquisitely preserved fungal structures on taxonomically defined hosts in the Princeton chert provides a unique opportunity for studying the diversity of microfungi in Tertiary paleoenvironments.

Root anatomy of palms II. Calamoideae

AbstractThe root‐anatomy of 13 genera of Calamoideae, of the 22 genera accepted by UHL & DRANSFIELD (1987) has been studied.Although this subfamily seems to be homogeneous, there are many features in the roots which allow to distinguish the genera and it becomes evident, that Calamoideae show no close relationship to Coryphoid palms.

The Coryphoid Palms: Patterns of Variation and Evolution

The Coryphoid Palms: Patterns of Variation and Evolution

The Transfer of Livistona kingiana (Palmae) to Pholidocarpus

Summary. On the basis of floral and vegetative characters Ridley's inclusion of the Malayan species Livistona kingiana Becc. in Pholidocarpus is shown to be correct. Livistona kingiana Becc. and Pholidocarpus macrocarpus Becc. are two large fan palms found growing in lowland swamps of the Malay Peninsula. Without fruit the two taxa appear to be indistinguishable. In fruit, however, there are no problems in naming them: L. kingiana has a very large fruit (for a species of Livistona), at least 6 cm in diameter at maturity, with a smooth, more or less shiny pericarp, whereas in P. macrocarpus the even larger fruit is covered in low corky warts of a dull mid-brown colour. These corky warts arise in a manner similar to those of the fruit ofjohannestei'smannia, Licuala bintulensis Becc., Manicaria, Pelagodoxa and probably other palms with such fruit (Dransfield 1970). Soon after fertilization, the epidermis of the enlarging ovary stops keeping abreast of the expansion of the developing pericarp. The epidermis cracks and dies, while the mesocarp increases considerably and becomes corky. Eventually the remains of the epidermis can be found as small smooth dead patches at the tips of low to high corky warts. In Livistona and Pholidocarpus, apparently slight differences in the patterns of pericarp growth rate account for the striking differences seen in the mature fruits of the two genera. (According to Read (1975) corky warts sometimes found on the fruit of Thrinax parviflora Swartz var. parviflora and previously used to delimit a separate species Th. tessellata Becc. are due to fungal attack, but we have no evidence that this is so in Pholidocarpus.) Doubts as to whether Pholidocarpus is distinct from Livistona arose when certain species of the related genus Licuala (L. bintulensis Becc. and perhaps two other as yet unnamed species) were discovered to have corky-warted rather than smooth fruit. If species of a genus so characteristic as Licuala can have warty rather than smooth fruit, is the possession of corky-warted fruits a character sufficient for separating Pholidocarpus from Livistona? In Pholidocarpus, however, the flowers are subtly but consistently different from those of Livistona (see key below). Furthermore, characters of the leaf are usually but not completely consistently associated with floral differences. On this basis we believe Pholidocarpus should be maintained as a genus distinct from Livistona. Ridley (1907) transferred Beccari's L. kingiana to Pholidocarpus and provided a modified generic description to take account of the smooth rather than corky-warted fruit. Beccari (1933) in his posthumously published monograph of Coryphoid palms, refuted the transfer to Pholidocarpus and included Ridley's combination P. kingianus as a synonym under L. kingiana. Beccari's comments are quite revealing: "The flowers described by Ridley as

A Dwarf Livistona (Palmae) from Borneo

Summary. A new palm species, Livistona exigua, is described from Borneo (Brunei), the first dwarf species known in the genus. Livistona is a genus of fan palms of about 28 species predominantly SE. Asian and Australian in distribution. The greatest diversity is found in Australia with about eleven species; here the genus ranges from tree palms up to 20-30 m tall down to shrub-like species (e.g. L. humilis R. Br.) with short stocky trunks to 5 m tall. In the Malesian rain forests Livistona is represented by tall tree palms only, these at maturity contributing in some way to the forest canopy, and this has hitherto appeared to be the constant aspect of the genus in these conditions. In the undergrowth another genus of Coryphoid palms, Licuala, has undergone extensive speciation; all except for one or two tree species (e.g. Licuala muelleri H. Wendl. & Drude) of Queensland are undergrowth species. Beccari (1933) noted that the genus Livistona was curiously absent from Borneo; since then, however, a representative from lowland swamp within the complex of L. saribus (Lour.) Merr., corresponding with L. hasseltii Hassk. of Java, has been found over a wide area of South Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) and herbarium specimens in Kew from Sandakan are apparently the same taxon. It was then most surprising to discover in the unmounted palm material at Kew a diminutive undergrowth Livistona collected by P. S. Ashton in 1959 in Brunei. This might easily have been passed over as a Licuala because of its small size were it not for the marked difference in leaf dissection between these two genera. In Livistona the lamina is partially divided up into compound or single-fold induplicate leaflets (i.e. V-shaped with margins adaxial, see Fig. Ic). The deepest splits normally extend only to about three-quarters of the radius of the lamina and are on the adaxial folds. Abaxial splitting occurs for a relatively short distance, producing cleft tips to the leaflets. In two species, Livistona loriphylla Becc. and L. decipiens Becc. from Australia, splits extend almost to the lamina base and there is a marked extension of the petiole into the lamina producing a typical 'costapalmate'

Palms and the Origin and Evolution of Monocotyledons

Past and Present taxonomic treatments and evolutionary analyses of monocotyledons have noted that unspecialized reproductive structures occur in some palms, but the size, inaccessibility, apparent and often real complexity of these plants have hampered detailed studies until recently. The most primitive palms are 14 or 15 apocarpous genera belonging to the Trithrinaux alliance in the coryphoid group. Apocarpy also characterizes Phoenix, a genus related to coryphoid palms but more specialized in some respects, and Nypa fruticans, a mangrove palm with a unique combination of primitive and specialized features. Distribution patterns, habits, leaf structure, germination, reproductive structures, chromosomes numbers, vessels, and vascular systems are described, as presently known, in these primitive palms, and their significance in the evolution of other palms, monocotyledons, and dicotyledons is evaluated. It is concluded that the palsm are not a morphologically unique and isolated group, as often postulated,...

Coryphoid palm fruits and seeds from the Danian of Nûgssuaq, West Greenland

Two species of coryphoid palm fruits are described, Coryphoides poulseni n. gen. et n.sp. and Coryphoicarpus globoides n.gen. et n.sp. The former has been found in the Upper Danian (formerly Lower Paleocene) of Qaersutjægerdal in central Nûgssuaq, the latter in the Lower Danian of the valley of Tunorssuaq, Nûgssuaq. The chief criteria for the determination of these fossil species as coryphoid palms are: 1) the big bulbous ingrowth from the functional pericarp of the placental region into the seed along the axis of the fruit (here called the columella), 2) the seed consisting mainly of a large cup-shaped endosperm, surrounding the columella, and 3) the small, saccate embryo inserted from the surface of the seed into the endosperm. Coryphoides poulseni n. gen. et n.sp. is distinguished by the position of the embryo, the existence of a 'chalaza valve' and the characteristics of the columella, including the shape of the placental scar. Coryphoicarpus globiodes n. gen. et n.sp. shows the same basic structure as Coryphoides poulseni n.gen. et n.sp. but differs from the latter in size and shape of the placental scar, shape of columella, course of the funiculus, position of chalaza, shape of 'the chalaza valve' and the position of the embryo. The determinations are based upon a comparative study of a number of recent coryphoid palms and of Palmospermum excavatum Reid & Chandler.

THE PALM GYNOECIUM

The morphology, anatomy, and histology of the gynoecia at or close to anthesis are described for 20 genera of palms selected to represent different taxonomic alliances and to include major gynoecial types within the family. Palms may have 1–10 carpels, but most have three. Fifteen genera, including 14 coryphoid palms and the monotypic Nypa fruticans, are apocarpous and the remainder, approximately 190, are syncarpous. Fusion of carpels in some gynoecia begins in the base, in others in the styles. Pseudomonomerous pistils occur in several different alliances: the ovarian parts of two carpels are reduced but three usually equal and functional styles and stigmas are present. The carpel is often follicular in shape with the ventral suture open or, more frequently, partially or completely closed. The carpel may be stipitate or sessile and usually has a conduplicate laminar part. Most carpels are spirally and laterally inserted on the receptacle, but the carpel in some unicarpellate genera (e.g., Thrinax) appears terminal. Stipes, ovarian parts, styles, and stigmas vary in structure and development. Septal nectaries which differ in size, in the presence or absence of specialized canals, and in position, characterize all genera of some groups but only some genera of others. Diverse vascular configurations in the bases of gynoecia vary according to the extent of the floral axis, the development of carpellary stipes, and the connation of the carpels and their adnation to the tip of the floral axis. Four types of carpellary vascular systems are present in the genera described: (1) most palm carpels have three major traces consisting of a dorsal bundle and two ventral bundles, and they may also have up to four pairs of lateral bundles or occasionally more; (2) in certain cocosoid palms no ventral bundles can be distinguished, but a dorsal bundle, many parallel lateral bundles, and a row of immature ventral strands vascularize each carpel; (3) carpels of Phytelephas have a dorsal bundle, two pairs of major lateral bundles and about four pairs of shorter lateral bundles, with no identifiable ventral bundles; (4) carpels of Nypa have many dichotomously branched bundles but none that are recognizable as dorsal, ventral, or lateral strands. Additional peripheral bundles or systems may be present in each of the above types. Ovules are supplied by 1–15 bundles. These are derived either from the carpellary stele; from ventral bundles only; from ventral, lateral, and dorsal bundles; or from a combination of these origins. Certain areas of the gynoecia or certain parts of dorsal carpellary walls in some genera are much less mature at anthesis than surrounding tissues. Implications for floral biology and relationships within the palms and of palms to other groups are discussed.

The Fossil Plants from Vero, Florida

Previous articleNext article FreeThe Fossil Plants from Vero, FloridaEdward W. BerryEdward W. Berry Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by The Journal of Geology Volume 25, Number 7Oct. - Nov., 1917 Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/622533 Views: 56Total views on this site Citations: 4Citations are reported from Crossref PDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:Sanchita Kumar, Taposhi Hazra, Robert A. Spicer, Manoshi Hazra, Teresa E.V. Spicer, Subir Bera, Mahasin Ali Khan Coryphoid palms from the K-Pg boundary of central India and their biogeographical implications: Evidence from megafossil remains, Plant Diversity 72 (Jan 2022).https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pld.2022.01.001Kaustav Roy, Taposhi Hazra, Manoshi Hazra, Sumana Mahato, Subir Bera, Mahasin Ali Khan A new coryphoid costapalmate palm leaf from the Maastrichtian-Danian of India, Botany Letters 19 (Dec 2020): 1–12.https://doi.org/10.1080/23818107.2020.1845974J. M. Adovasio, C. A. Hemmings, F. J. Vento, J. S. Duggan, J. H. Higley What We Learned at the Old Vero Site (8IR009), Vero Beach, Florida: 2014–2017, PaleoAmerica 5, no.33 (Oct 2019): 231–261.https://doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2019.1670031JasonM Evans Pistia stratiotes L. in the Florida Peninsula: Biogeographic Evidence and Conservation Implications of Native Tenure for an ′Invasive′ Aquatic Plant, Conservation and Society 11, no.33 (Jan 2013): 233.https://doi.org/10.4103/0972-4923.121026