Xihuphyllum, a novel sphenopsid plant with large laminate leaves from the Upper Devonian of South China

The sphenopsids first appeared in the Late Devonian, becoming diverse in the Carboniferous and Permian, but are represented now by the single genus Equisetum. In this article, morphologically preserved material of the novel sphenopsid plant, Xihuphyllum megalofolium (Wu) Chen emend. Huang et al., is...

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Published in:Palaeogeography, palaeoclimatology, palaeoecology palaeoclimatology, palaeoecology, 2017-01, Vol.466, p.7-20
Main Authors: Huang, Pu, Liu, Le, Deng, Zhenzhen, Basinger, James F., Xue, Jinzhuang
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Equisetum
Fossil plant
Leaf evolution
Morphometric analysis
Plant architecture
Wutong formation
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Summary:The sphenopsids first appeared in the Late Devonian, becoming diverse in the Carboniferous and Permian, but are represented now by the single genus Equisetum. In this article, morphologically preserved material of the novel sphenopsid plant, Xihuphyllum megalofolium (Wu) Chen emend. Huang et al., is described from the Upper Devonian Wutong Formation of Zhejiang Province, China, providing new data on the early evolutionary history of this group. This plant is characterized by a hierarchical branching pattern, with robust nodose stems up to 42.5mm wide and two orders of lateral branches. Morphometric studies show that the internode width of stems and first-order branches are correlated with the internode length. Leaves, cuneate, broadly cuneate, or spatulate in shape and highly variable in size, are arranged in whorls at the nodes of stems and branches. The leaves of Xihuphyllum reach over 80mm in length and >3000mm2 in area, an unusually large size for Paleozoic sphenopsids. Xihuphyllum is reconstructed as having a stature 2–3m in height, and represents an early, large-bodied member within the extinct Sphenophyllales. The occurrence of Xihuphyllum and contemporaneous members of the same group, including Eviostachya, Hamatophyton, Rotafolia and Sphenophyllum, indicates early diversification of sphenopsids in South China. [Display omitted] •Xihuphyllum represents an early, large-bodied member within the extinct Sphenophyllales.•Characterized by a hierarchical branching pattern, with wide stems and two orders of branches•Leaves reach over 3000mm2 in area, an unusual large size for Paleozoic sphenopsids.•Xihuphyllum constituted monotypic communities on the Famennian terrestrial landscape.
ISSN:0031-0182
1872-616X
DOI:10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.11.004