Coniopteris

Summary

Coniopteris is an extinct genus of Mesozoic fern leaves. It was widespread over both hemispheres during the Jurassic and Early Cretaceous, with over 130 species having been described.[1] While traditionally assumed to have been a member of Dicksoniaceae or a close relative of Thyrsopteris, a 2020 cladistic analysis found it to be a stem group of Polypodiales.[1] Most species of Coniopteris probably had a herbaceous habit.[1] Coniopteris laciniata had tufts of leaves sprouting from intervals of a thin, creeping rhizome.[2] The genus is technically a junior synonym of the little used Polystichites, but was conserved by the ICZN in 2013.[3] Some authors suggest a range of Early Jurassic-early Late Cretaceous for the genus,[1] while others suggest a more expansive range spanning from the Middle Triassic to the Eocene.[4]

Coniopteris
Coniopteris sp. from the Mecsek Coal Formation, Hungary, Hettangian
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Division: Polypodiophyta
Class: Polypodiopsida
Subclass: Polypodiidae
Genus: Coniopteris
Brongniart 1849
Type species
Coniopteris murrayana
Brongniart 1835
Species
  • C. bella Li, Xiu, Tan & Tian, 2023
  • C. burejensis Li, Xiu, Tan & Tian, 2023
  • C. frutiformis Douglas 1973
  • C. hymenophylloides Seward 1900
  • C. murrayana Brongniart 1835
Synonyms
  • Polystichites C. Presl in Sternberg, 1838

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Li, Chunxiang; Miao, Xinyuan; Zhang, Li-Bing; Ma, Junye; Hao, Jiasheng (January 2020). "Re-evaluation of the systematic position of the Jurassic–Early Cretaceous fern genus Coniopteris". Cretaceous Research. 105: 104136. Bibcode:2020CrRes.10504136L. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2019.04.007. S2CID 146355798.
  2. ^ Blanco‐Moreno, Candela; Buscalioni, Ángela D. (2023-04-08). "Revision of the Barremian fern Coniopteris laciniata from Las Hoyas and El Montsec (Spain): Highlighting its importance in the evolution of vegetation during the Early Cretaceous". Taxon. 72 (3): 625–637. doi:10.1002/tax.12888. hdl:10486/707335. ISSN 0040-0262. S2CID 258044454.
  3. ^ Doweld, Alexander B. (2013). "(2186) Proposal to conserve the name Coniopteris against Polystichites (fossil Pteridophyta, Protodicksoniales)". Taxon. 62 (4): 840. doi:10.12705/624.21. ISSN 1996-8175.
  4. ^ Trevisan, Cristine; Dutra, Tânia; Ianuzzi, Roberto; Sander, Andrea; Wilberger, Thièrs; Manríquez, Leslie Marcela Elizabeth; Mansilla, Héctor; Leppe, Marcelo (August 2022). "Coniopteris antarctica sp. nov. (Pteridophyta) and associated plant assemblage from the Upper Cretaceous of Rip Point, Nelson Island, Antarctica". Cretaceous Research. 136: 105185. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2022.105185. S2CID 247684239.