In search of the first flower: A Jurassic angiosperm, Archaefructus, from Northeast China

Science

Volumn 282, Issue 5394, 1998, Pages 1692-1695

  Sun, Ge ^a   Dilcher, David L ^b   Zheng, Shaoling ^c   Zhou, Zhekun ^d  

^a NANJING INSTITUTE OF GEOLOGY AND PALAEONTOLOGY   (China)

^b UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA   (United States)

^c SHENYANG INSTITUTE OF GEOLOGY AND MINERAL RESOURCES   (China)

^d KUNMING INSTITUTE OF BOTANY   (China)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

FOSSIL; JURASSIC;

ANGIOSPERM; ARTICLE; BOTANY; CHINA; EVOLUTION; FOSSIL; PRIORITY JOURNAL; SPECIES DIFFERENCE; STRUCTURE ANALYSIS;

CHINA;

ANGIOSPERMAE; ARCHAEFRUCTUS; MAGNOLIOPHYTA;

EID: 0032573569     PISSN: 00368075     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1126/science.282.5394.1692     Document Type: Article

References (50)

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15. P. E. Smith et al. [Can. J. Earth Sci. 32, 1426 (1995)] suggested that the age of these rocks is Lower Cretaceous (122 million years). However, Chen et al. (13) maintain that the samples analyzed came from intrusive volcanic rocks many millions of years younger, rather than from the fossil-bearing sediments (which they presume to be about 145 million years ago) deposited in the Upper Jurassic Associated with the angiosperm fruiting axes reported here are abundant remains of non-angiospermous plants, which indicate a Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous age. We have identified these plants as Thallites sp., Equisetites spp., Onychiopsis elongata (Geyl.) Yok., Coniopteris spp., Ruffordia goeppertii (Dunk.) Sew., Cladophlebis spp., Pterophyllum sp., Nilssonia sp., Otozamites sp., Neozamites sp., Baiera hastata Krassilov, Sphenobaiera sp., Czekanowskia rigida Heer, Solenites murrayana L. et H., Phoenicopsis sp., Schizolepis jeholensii Yabe et Endo, Pityophyllum sp., Pityocladus yabei (Toyama et Oishi) Chang, Elatocladus manchurica (Yok.) Yabe, Brachyphyllum sp., Sphenolepis sp., Gurvanella sp. Krassilov, and Potamageton? jeholensis Yabe et Endo. The theropod dinosaur, Sinosauropteryx, from the lower part of this formation (13) is comparable to Compsognathus from the Upper Jurassic (Tithonian) Solnhofen Beds in Germany [P. Wellnhofer, Archaeopteryx 11, 1 (1993)]. In addition, the mouth parts of flies from the Yixian Formation (12) are similar to those known from the Upper Jurassic of Kazakhstan (11). Therefore, we consider the lower Yixian Formation to be Late Jurassic in age.
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17. Etymology: Archae-for ancient; fructus for fruiting. The species liaoningensis is named for the province in China from which the specimens were collected. Specific diagnosis: Same as for the genus. Holotype: Deposited in the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Academia Sinica, number SZ0916 (Fig. 2). Age and stratigraphy: Upper Jurassic, Yixian Formation.
18. Description: Fertile axes vary in size (Fig. 2A). Main axis is 85 mm long from leaf axis and 3 mm wide basally, tapering to 1 mm wide distally. The lateral fertile axis originates from a leaf axil, 86 mm Long and 1 mm wide basally, tapering to 0.3 mm wide distally. Fruits are attached by pedicels that are 0.75 to 1.5 mm long by 0.25 to 0.6 mm wide. Fruits are larger basally, 7 to 9 mm long by 2 to 3 mm wide, each containing three (two to four) seeds. Finger-like prominences extend about 1 mm from apex of fruits (Fig. 2B). The fruits are positioned at acute angles to the axis. The main axis has 18 fruits and 11 peg-like bases of pedicels (that bore deciduous reproductive organs) about 0.5 mm long. The lateral axis has 30 fruits and four peg-like remnants of the pedicels that bore deciduous reproductive organs, and smaller fruits, 5 to 6 mm long by 1.5 to 2 mm wide. The fruits are crowded at the axis apex where fruit size decreases. Fruits near the apex are 3 mm long by 2 mm wide, each with two seeds. One other fruiting axis (SZ0917, not figured) contains 17 fruits crowded into 35 mm of the fragmentary axis. Seeds fill fruits and have an oblique orientation. They appear to be attached to the adaxial side of the fruit. Seeds may overlap within fruits or may be distinctly separated by oblique bands of tissue. Cuticles of the seed coats are thin. Epidermal cells are rectangular-polygonal, about 25 to 45 μm by 12 to 20 μm. Anticlinal cell walls are sinuous and cutinized, about 2.5 to 3.5 μm thick (Fig. 2C). Periclinal cell walls are somewhat unevenly cutinized.
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50. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (projects 39370055 and 39770059), the Academy of Sciences, China (project KZ952-S1-426), and the Becker/Dilcher Endowment for Paleobotany of the University of Florida Foundation. We thank Z. P. Zhang for his help in fossil collecting, and S. W. Mei, Y. Q. Mao, Z. Y. Song, S. W. Zhao, J. Y. Chen, C. Jaramillo, and T. Lott for their assistance with the preparation of the fossil material and this manuscript.