The development of floristic provinciality during the Middle and Late Paleozoic

Wnuk, Christopher

doi:10.1016/0034-6667(95)00022-4

Cited by 66 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Terrestrial vegetation presents a progressive increase in provinciality in the Late Paleozoic, resulting in four floral realms: Gondwanan and Angaran in the southern and northern middleto-high paleolatitudes, and Euramerican and Cathaysian in the subtropical to tropical paleolatitudes (37). The Gondwanan and Angaran floras are quite distinct and easily recognizable, but the Euramerican (in present day Europe and North America) and Cathaysian (in present day China and east Asia) floras are similar in many respects, and their relationship has been discussed as a concern in Late Paleozoic paleophytogeography (33,34,38,39).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Permian vegetational Pompeii from Inner Mongolia and its implications for landscape paleoecology and paleobiogeography of Cathaysia

Wang

Pfefferkorn

Zhang

et al. 2012

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

138

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Plant communities of the geologic past can be reconstructed with high fidelity only if they were preserved in place in an instant in time. Here we report such a flora from an early Permian (ca. 298 Ma) ash-fall tuff in Inner Mongolia, a time interval and area where such information is filling a large gap of knowledge. About 1,000 m 2 of forest growing on peat could be reconstructed based on the actual location of individual plants. Tree ferns formed a lower canopy and either Cordaites, a coniferophyte, or Sigillaria, a lycopsid, were present as taller trees. Noeggerathiales, an enigmatic and extinct spore-bearing plant group of small trees, is represented by three species that have been found as nearly complete specimens and are presented in reconstructions in their plant community. Landscape heterogenity is apparent, including one site where Noeggerathiales are dominant. This peat-forming flora is also taxonomically distinct from those growing on clastic soils in the same area and during the same time interval. This Permian flora demonstrates both similarities and differences to floras of the same age in Europe and North America and confirms the distinct character of the Cathaysian floral realm. Therefore, this flora will serve as a baseline for the study of other fossil floras in East Asia and the early Permian globally that will be needed for a better understanding of paleoclimate evolution through time.coal-swamp plant community | plant paleoecology | volcanic ash-fall tuff | Wuda

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Permian vegetational Pompeii from Inner Mongolia and its implications for landscape paleoecology and paleobiogeography of Cathaysia

Wang

Pfefferkorn

Zhang

et al. 2012

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

138

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“…South China was an important center of radiation and dispersal for Paleozoic tracheophytes (Hao and Xue, 2013a;Xue and Hao, 2014). One of the four major Paleozoic floristic realms, the Cathaysian flora, was widely represented in South China during the Carboniferous and Permian Wnuk, 1996;Hilton and Cleal, 2007;Wang et al, 2012). In addition, South China represents a clearly delimited tropical province, with distinct features relative to Euramerican provinces (Raymond, 1985;Wnuk, 1996;Scotese, 2001;Hilton and Cleal, 2007;Wang et al, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Stepwise evolution of Paleozoic tracheophytes from South China: Contrasting leaf disparity and taxic diversity

Xue

Huang

Ruta

et al. 2015

Earth-Science Reviews

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During the late Paleozoic, vascular land plants (tracheophytes) diversified into a remarkable variety of morphological types, ranging from tiny, aphyllous, herbaceous forms to giant leafy trees. Leaf shape is a key determinant of both function and structural diversity of plants, but relatively little is known about the tempo and mode of leaf morphological diversification and its correlation with tracheophyte diversity and abiotic changes during this remarkable macroevolutionary event, the greening of the continents. We use the extensive record of Paleozoic tracheophytes from South China to explore models of morphological evolution in early land plants. Our findings suggest that tracheophyte leaf disparity and diversity were decoupled, and that they were under different selective regimes. Two key phases in the evolution of South Chinese tracheophyte leaves can be recognized. In the first phase, from Devonian to Mississippian, taxic diversity increased substantially, as did leaf disparity, at the same time as they acquired novel features in their vascular systems, reproductive organs, and overall architecture. The second phase, through the Carboniferous-Permian transition, saw recovery of wetland communities in South China, associated with a further expansion of morphologies of simple leaves and an offset shift in morphospace occupation by compound leaves. Comparison with Euramerica suggests that the floras from South China were unique in several ways. The Late Devonian radiation of sphenophyllaleans contributed significantly to the expansion of leaf morphospace, such that the evolution of large laminate leaves in this group occurred much earlier than those in Euramerica. The Pennsylvanian decrease in taxic richness had little effect on the disparity of compound leaves. Finally, the distribution in morphospace of the Permian pecopterids, gigantopterids, and equisetaleans occurred at the periphery of Carboniferous leaf morphospace. Keywords• Leaf morphology;• Disparity;• Diversity;• Tracheophytes;• Floral provinciality;• Paleozoic IntroductionThe origin and diversification of tracheophytes (vascular plants) in the Paleozoic was a key event, as life moved from the water to colonize land (Kenrick and Crane, 1997, Vecoli et al., 2010 and Kenrick et al., 2012. The earliest known tracheophyte megafossils, from the Late Silurian-Early Devonian, are characterized by a wide distribution, low taxic diversity, and simple morphological organization (Edwards et al., 1992 and Gensel, 2008). It has been hypothesized that the increase in Paleozoic tracheophyte diversity throughout the Paleozoic was triggered by several key innovations, including increased vasculature complexity, monopodial stem branching, secondary xylem growth, formation of sporangium clusters, leaves, and heterospory (Niklas et al., 1983, Knoll et al., 1984 and Niklas, 1988.In turn, such innovations are thought to have promoted greater morphological variety and a rapid exploration and colonization of new niches (Bateman et al., 1998 and Hao and Xue, 2...

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“…Nas últimas duas décadas, as descobertas de plantas vasculares devonianas em diferentes localidades da América do Sul [Brasil (Eodevoniano, GERRIENNE et al, 2001), Uruguai (Eodevoniano, SPRECHMANN et al, 1993), Bolívia (Eo/Mesodevoniano, NOETINGER, 2008;RACHEBOEUF et al, 2012), Colômbia (Mesodevoniano, BERRY et al, 2000), Argentina (Mesodevoniano, CINGOLANI et al, 2002;Di PASQUO et al, 2009), Venezuela (Meso/Neodevoniano, BERRY & EDWARDS, 1995) e Chile (Neodevoniano, MOISAN et al, 2011)] que integravam o Gondwana Ocidental, têm aberto novas possibilidades de aprofundamento e de revisões sobre pontos importantes da história inicial da evolução dessas plantas primitivas neste continente. Por exemplo, sabe-se que, diferentemente das províncias paleofitogeográficas contemporâneas situadas nas médias a baixas latitudes (Domínios Angárico, Euramericano e Norte do Gondwana, RAYMOND et al, 1985;RAYMOND, 1987;WNUK, 1996), cujos primeiros registros datam do Neossiluriano, a flora que ocupava o Gondwana Ocidental, sobretudo na Bacia do Paraná, teve o seu início apenas no Eodevoniano. Em adição, a flora do Gondwana meridional de altas latitudes (70-80ºS) apresentava-se pouco diversificada, com possível grau de endemismo e sujeita a condições ambientais restritivas (GERRIENNE et al, 2001).…”

Section: (Figura 1)unclassified

“…São desta fase os trabalhos de Barbosa (1949), Sommer (1954), Kräusel (1954), Guerra-Sommer (1993), Guerra-Sommer et al (1990;1996). Barbosa (1949) classificou um vegetal encontrado em Jaguariaíva-PR, como Orvillea petrii gen. e sp.…”

Section: (Figura 1)unclassified

Histórico e evolução do conhecimento sobre a paleoflora do Devoniano na Bacia do Paraná

2013

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Resumo: Nos últimos anos, a execução de trabalhos de campo no município de Tibagi-PR tem possibilitado a prospecção de fitofósseis bem preservados na Formação São Domingos (Bacia do Paraná), resgatando o interesse científico da paleobotânica nesta unidade. O presente trabalho objetivou caracterizar a evolução do conhecimento sobre a paleoflora devoniana da Bacia do Paraná, com base no histórico das pesquisas no Brasil e apresentar as perspectivas futuras a partir de novos achados em seções recentemente levantadas do Devoniano Médio no estado do Paraná. Foram identificados e descritos três táxons ocorrentes nos afloramentos Sítio Wolff e Itáytyba (Formação São Domingos), a saber: Spongiophyton, Palaeostigma e Haplostigma. A continuidade das pesquisas com este material fóssil pode colaborar na compreensão dos estudos evolutivos e paleoecológicos das plantas, além de fornecer dados relevantes para interpretações dos sistemas deposicionais e reconstituições paleofitogeográficas. Palavras-chave:Paleobotânica. Bacia do Paraná. Formação São Domingos. Devoniano.Abstract: Currently, the fieldwork developed in the Tibagi municipality, Paraná state, have enabled the prospection of phytofossils preserved in the São Domingos Formation (Paraná Basin), bringing back the scientific interest of paleobotany on this unit. The present study aimed to characterize the evolution of knowledge about Devonian paleoflora of the Paraná Basin, based on the history of research in Brazil and present future perspectives from new findings in sections recently described in the Middle

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The development of floristic provinciality during the Middle and Late Paleozoic

Cited by 66 publications

References 33 publications

Permian vegetational Pompeii from Inner Mongolia and its implications for landscape paleoecology and paleobiogeography of Cathaysia

Permian vegetational Pompeii from Inner Mongolia and its implications for landscape paleoecology and paleobiogeography of Cathaysia

Stepwise evolution of Paleozoic tracheophytes from South China: Contrasting leaf disparity and taxic diversity

Histórico e evolução do conhecimento sobre a paleoflora do Devoniano na Bacia do Paraná

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