Glossopteris is the largest and best-known genus of the extinct Permian order of seed plants known as Glossopteridales. The genus Glossopteris refers only to leaves, within a framework of form genera used in paleobotany. Species of Glossopteris were the dominant trees of the middle to high-latitude lowland vegetation across the supercontinent Gondwana during the Permian Period. Glossopteris fossils were critical in recognizing former connections between the various fragments of Gondwana: South America, Africa, India, Australia, New Zealand, and Antarctica.
Palissya is an extinct form genus of female (ovule-bearing) conifer cones, known from the Late Triassic (Rhaetian) to the Early Cretaceous (Aptian). The cone of Palissya is noted for its unusual catkin-like construction: Slender bracts are rigidly attached in a helical pattern around a tall woody core. The adaxial (upper) surface of each bract bears two parallel rows of ovules which are encased in cup-like structures formed by scales. The seeds are thin-walled and were likely only viable for a short period of time, meaning that they were probably adapted to wind dispersal.
Dicroidium is an extinct genus of fork-leaved seed plants. It is the archetypal genus of the corystosperms, an extinct group of seed plants, often called "seed ferns", assigned to the order Corystospermales or Umkomasiales. Species of Dicroidium were widely distributed and dominant over Gondwana during the Triassic. Their fossils are known from South Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, Australia, New Zealand, South America, Madagascar, the Indian subcontinent and Antarctica.
Pachypteris is a Mesozoic pteridosperm genus of fossil leaves. It has either been aligned with the peltasperms or the corystosperms.
Agathoxylon is a form genus of fossil wood, including massive tree trunks. Although identified from the late Palaeozoic to the end of the Mesozoic, Agathoxylon is common from the Carboniferous to Triassic. Agathoxylon represents the wood of multiple conifer groups, including both Araucariaceae and Cheirolepidiaceae, with late Paleozoic and Triassic forms possibly representing other conifers or other seed plant groups like "pteridosperms".
Nilssonia is a genus of fossil foliage traditionally assigned to the Cycadophyta either in Cycadales or their own order Nilssoniales, though the relationships of this genus with the Cycadales have been put into question on chemical grounds.
Lepidopteris is a form genus for leaves of Peltaspermaceae, an extinct family of seed plants, which lived from around 260 to 190 million years ago, from the Late Permian to Early Jurassic. Fossils of the genus have been found across both hemispheres. Nine species are currently recognized.Lepidopteris was a common and widespread seed fern, which survived the Permian-Triassic extinction event but was largely wiped out by the Triassic-Jurassic extinction event. Lepidopteris callipteroides is especially common between the first two episodes of Permian-Triassic extinction event, and L. ottonis forms a comparable acme zone immediate before the Triassic-Jurassic extinction event. Lepidopteris would persist into the Early Jurassic in Patagonia, represented by the species Lepidopteris scassoi.
This article contains papers in paleobotany that were published in 2016.
Umkomasia is a genus of seed bearing organs produced by corystosperm seed ferns, first based on fossils collected by Hamshaw Thomas from the Burnera Waterfall locality near the Umkomaas River of South Africa. He recognized on the basis of cuticular similarities that the same plant produced pollen organs Pteruchus and the leaves Dicroidium. Various other corystosperm seed bearing organs from the Jurassic and Cretaceous have been assigned to this genus, but recently have been given distinct genera, with Umkomasia being restricted to the Triassic.
Corystosperms are a group of extinct seed plants belonging to the family Corystospermaceae assigned to the order Corystospermales or Umkomasiales. They were first described based on fossils collected by Hamshaw Thomas from the Burnera Waterfall locality near the Umkomaas River of South Africa. Corystosperms are typified by a group of plants that bore forked Dicroidium leaves, Umkomasia cupulate ovulate structures and Pteruchus pollen organs, which grew as trees that were widespread over Gondwana during the Middle and Late Triassic. Other fossil Mesozoic seed plants with similar leaf and/or reproductive structures have also sometimes been included within the "corystosperm" concept sensu lato, such as the "doyleoids" from the Early Cretaceous of North America and Asia. A potential corystosperm sensu lato, the leaf genus Komlopteris, is known from the Eocene of Tasmania, around 53-50 million years old, over 10 million years after the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event.
This article records new taxa of plants that are scheduled to be described during the year 2017, as well as other significant discoveries and events related to paleobotany that are scheduled to occur in the year 2017.
This article records new taxa of plants that are scheduled to be described during the year 2018, as well as other significant discoveries and events related to paleobotany that occurred in the year 2018.
Baiera is a genus of prehistoric gymnosperms in the order Ginkgoales. It is one of the oldest fossil foliage types of Ginkgoales, and is related to the genera Ginkgo and Ginkgoites. Fossils of Baiera are found worldwide, and have been known from the Permian to the Cretaceous.
Pterophyllum is an extinct form genus of leaves known from the Carnian to the Maastrichtian, belonging to the Bennettitales. It contains more than 50 species, and is mainly found in Eurasia and North America.
This article records new taxa of fossil plants that are scheduled to be described during the year 2021, as well as other significant discoveries and events related to paleobotany that are scheduled to occur in the year 2021.
Nilssoniopteris is an extinct form genus of leaves belonging to the Bennettitales. Leaves are slender and often entire-margined (smooth-edged), though some species have dissected leaves with numerous small segments extending down to the rachis of the leaf. Nilssoniopteris-like leaves are distinguished by their syndetocheilic stomata, indicating bennettitalean affinities. Similar "taeniopterid" leaves are placed in the genus Nilssonia if their stomata are instead haplocheilic, or Taeniopteris if the cuticle is not preserved. Leaves of Nilssoniopteris vittata from the Middle Jurassic of England are associated with bisexual Williamsoniella reproductive structures.
This paleobotany list records new fossil plant taxa that were to be described during the year 2022, as well as notes other significant paleobotany discoveries and events which occurred during 2022.
This paleobotany list records new fossil plant taxa that were to be described during the year 2012, as well as notes other significant paleobotany discoveries and events which occurred during 2012.
Taeniopteris is an extinct form genus of Mesozoic vascular plant leaves, perhaps representing those of cycads, bennettitaleans, or marattialean ferns. The form genus is almost certainly a polyphyletic category for unfertile leaves of a certain shape ("taeniopterids") which cannot be assigned to specific groups due to a lack of information on cuticle or spore structures. The leaves are simple, with a strong central vein (rhachis) and an unbroken margin. The central vein leads to nearly perpendicular lateral veins, which may be slightly divided or undivided. The shape of the leaf is variable, but often elongated and smooth-edged. "Taeniopterid" leaves with bennettitalean-type cuticle are placed in the form genus Nilssoniopteris, while those with cycad-type cuticle are placed within Nilssonia and related genera. Some fertile "taeniopterids" preserve spore packages, and can be assigned to marattialean ferns.
This paleobotany list records new fossil plant taxa that were to be described during the year 2024, as well as notes other significant paleobotany discoveries and events which occurred during 2024.
