Sphenopteris
Temporal range: Late Devonian-Cretaceous
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Fossilized fern-like leaf structure
Sphenopteris specimen found in Carboniferous rocks in Loire-Atlantique department, France
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Division: †Pteridospermatophyta
Class: †Lyginopteridopsida
Order: †Lyginopteridales
Family: †Lyginopteridaceae
Genus: †Sphenopteris
Sternberg 1825
Species
  • S. alata †
  • S. elegans †
  • S. fragilis †
  • S. obtusiloba †
  • S. pinnae †
  • S. plicata †
  • S. pottsvillea †
  • S. sanjuliensis †
  • S. spiniformis †
  • S. suessi †
  • S. trifoliata †
  • S. valentinii †

Sphenopteris is a genus of seed ferns containing the foliage of various extinct plants, ranging from the Devonian to Late Cretaceous.[1][2] One species, S. höninghausi, was transferred to the genus Crossotheca in 1911.[3]

Biology

The frond of Sphenopteris could be up to 20 inches (51 cm) long.[1]

Distribution

In Brazil, fossil of form genus Sphenopteris was located in outcrop Morro Papalé in the city of Mariana Pimentel. They are in the geopark Paleorrota in Rio Bonito Formation and date from Sakmarian in Permian.[4] Fossils of Sphenopteris have also been found in the Valle Alto Formation, Caldas, Colombia, among many other locations.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 Palmer, Douglas; et al. (2009). Prehistoric Life: The Definitive Visual History of Life on Earth (1st American ed.). New York: Dorling Kindersley. p. 149. ISBN 978-0-7566-5573-0.
  2. ↑ Manuscript entitled, Fossil Flora and Fauna of the Pennsylvanian Period, Will County, Illinois
  3. ↑ F. L. S., Johnson, T. D. (1911). A seed-bearing Irish Pteridosperm, Crossotheca Höninghausi, Kidston (Lyginodendron oldhamium, Williamson). Royal Dublin Society
  4. ↑ Afloramento Morro do Papaléo, Mariana Pimentel, RS
  5. ↑ Sphenopteris at Fossilworks.org


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