Goczania rugosa E.M.FRIIS, P.R.CRANE et K.R.PEDERSEN, 2019

Friis, Else Marie, Crane, Peter R. & Pedersen, Kaj Raunsgaard, 2019, The Early Cretaceous Mesofossil Flora Of Torres Vedras (Ne Of Forte Da Forca), Portugal: A Palaeofloristic Analysis Of An Early Angiosperm Community, Fossil Imprint 75 (2), pp. 153-257 : 196

Goczania rugosa E.M.FRIIS, P.R.CRANE et K.R.PEDERSEN sp. nov.

Text-fig. 27a–f

H o l o t y p e. Designated here. S136688 (Torres Vedras sample 44; figured Text-fig. 27a, c–f ).

P l a n t F o s s i l N a m e s R e g i s t r y N u m b e r.

PFN000462 (for new species).

P a r a t y p e s. Designated here. S148129 (Torres Vedras

43), S136664 (Torres Vedras sample 44).

R e p o s i t o r y. Palaeobotanical Collections , Department of Palaeobiology, the Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, Sweden .

E t y m o l o g y. From Latin: rugosus referring to rugose surface of the pollen grains.

T y p e l o c a l i t y. Torres Vedras (NE of Forte de

Forca; 39°06′13″ N, 9°14′47″ W).

T y p e s t r a t u m a n d a g e. Lower member of the Almargem Formation; Early Cretaceous (late Barremianearly Aptian).

D i a g n o s i s. As for the genus with the following additions: Equatorial outline of pollen almost circular. Tectum weakly rugulate. Microechinae evenly distributed over the tectum.

D i m e n s i o n s. Length of anther: about 0.45 mm; width of anther: 0.45 mm. Diameter of pollen grains: 14.5– 15.5 µm.

D e s c r i p t i o n a n d r e m a r k s. Goczania rugosa is based on three well-preserved anthers with pollen grains in situ. The anthers are short, broad, dithecate and tetrasporangiate ( Text-fig. 27a, b ). The outer surface of the anther wall has short trichomes close to the apex. The inner surface of anther wall is covered by small, spherical, densely spaced orbicules with a microechinate surface. Orbicules are also scattered over the surface of the pollen grains ( Text-fig. 27f ).

The pollen grains are oblate, circular to elliptical in equatorial outline, about 14.5–15.5 µm in diameter and monocolpate ( Text-fig. 27c–f ). The colpus is short with an irregular and indistinct margin, although in occasional abraded grains the colpus margin is sharply outlined in the foot layer. The colpus membrane is verrucate to rugulate. The exine is tectate with the tectum covered with densely spaced microechinate. The microechinae occur only singly, and do not merge together with their neighbors in groups.

Pollen grains of Goczania rugosa are closely similar to those associated with the fruits of Appomattoxia minuta and it is possible that these fruits, and the Goczania rugosa stamens with their in situ pollen grains, were produced by the same kind of plants. Currently, however, both the fruits and the stamens only occur isolated and secure attribution of the two organs to the same plant will require additional evidence.

A f f i n i t y a n d o t h e r o c c u r r e n c e s. Like Appomattoxia minuta and A. ancistrophora , as well as Appofructus nudus and Appofructus sp. , Goczania rugosa is probably related to extant Piperales (see above). Goczania rugosa is also represented in the Catefica mesofossil flora by a well-preserved stamen with pollen in situ.

Figures

Text-fig. 27. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of monocolpate pollen grains of Goczania rugosa gen. et sp. nov. in situ in dithecate, tetrasporangiate stamens; Torres Vedras locality, Portugal. a, b) Stamens in apical view (holotype a) showing the paired pollen sacs; c) Pollen grain from stamen fragment in (b) showing short aperture and rugulate-microechinate surface; d–f) Pollen grains from stamen fragment in (a) showing a folded distal aperture and rugulate-microechinate surface; note the orbicules of different sizes. Specimens, TV44-S136688 (holotype; a, c–f), TV44-S136664 (b). Scale bars 300 Μm (a,b), 6 Μm (c–e), 3 Μm (f).