Paurodendron stellatum: a new Permian permineralized herbaceous lycopsid from the Prince Charles Mountains, Antarctica

• Published in: Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology
• Main Authors: McLoughlin, Stephen, Drinnan, Andrew, Slater, Ben, Hilton, Jason
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Naturhistoriska riksmuseet, Enheten för paleobiologi 2015
• Subjects: Heterosporous lycopsida; Isoëtales; Bainmedart Coal Measures; Lycopsid anatomy; Megaspore; Gondwana; Other Earth Sciences; Annan geovetenskap; East Antarctica; Prince Charles Mountains; Glossopteris; Antarc*; Antarctica
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:nrm:diva-1345; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revpalbo.2015.04.004

Diminutive, silica-permineralized lycopsid axes, from a Guadalupian (Middle Permian) silicified peat in the Bainmedart Coal Measures of East Antarctica are described and assigned to Paurodendron stellatum sp. nov. Axes consist only of primary-growth tissues with a vascular system characterized by an exarch actinostele with 6–20 protoxylem points. Stems have a relatively narrow cortex of thin-walled cells that are commonly degraded, but the root cortex typically contains more robust, thick-walled cells. The stems bear helically inserted, elliptical–rhombic, ligulate microphylls. Roots possess an eccentrically positioned monarch vascular strand. Paurodendron stellatum is one of a very small number of anatomically preserved lycopsid axes described from the Gondwanan Permian and represents the first post-Carboniferous record of this genus. Based on dispersed vegetative remains, megaspores and microspores, herbaceous lycopsids, such as P. stellatum, appear to have been important understorey components of both low- and high-latitude mire forests of the late Palaeozoic. Reconstructing the lost forests of Antarctica: the palaeoecology, anatomy and phylogeny of the iconic Glossopteris flora Exceptional permineralized biotas - windows into the evolution and functional diversity of terrestrial ecosystems through time