The isolated and anatomically_preserved lepidodendralean leaf cushions were described from coal balls in Wangjiazhai Formation (upper Upper Permian) in western Guizhou Province. These leaf cushions are very similar t...The isolated and anatomically_preserved lepidodendralean leaf cushions were described from coal balls in Wangjiazhai Formation (upper Upper Permian) in western Guizhou Province. These leaf cushions are very similar to Lepidodendron lepidophloides Yao both in size and morphology. They probably belong to the same species in different preservative condition. Comparisons on morphology and anatomy of L. lepidophloides and lepidodendralean leaf cushion genera, such as Lepidodendron, Lepidophloios, Sigillaria and Cathaysiodendron revealed that L. lepidophloides possesses mixed features of all these genera and it can not be assigned into any of them without doubt. It probably represents a new genus. Because the anatomical features of the other parts of the stem as well as the fertile organs related to these leaf cushions are unknown, the specific name L. lepidophloides is adopted. We leave this taxonomic problem open till the relationship between these leaf cushions and the stem and fertile organs become clear. This is the first report on the detailed anatomical features of the Cathaysian lepidodendralean leaf cushions.展开更多
文摘The isolated and anatomically_preserved lepidodendralean leaf cushions were described from coal balls in Wangjiazhai Formation (upper Upper Permian) in western Guizhou Province. These leaf cushions are very similar to Lepidodendron lepidophloides Yao both in size and morphology. They probably belong to the same species in different preservative condition. Comparisons on morphology and anatomy of L. lepidophloides and lepidodendralean leaf cushion genera, such as Lepidodendron, Lepidophloios, Sigillaria and Cathaysiodendron revealed that L. lepidophloides possesses mixed features of all these genera and it can not be assigned into any of them without doubt. It probably represents a new genus. Because the anatomical features of the other parts of the stem as well as the fertile organs related to these leaf cushions are unknown, the specific name L. lepidophloides is adopted. We leave this taxonomic problem open till the relationship between these leaf cushions and the stem and fertile organs become clear. This is the first report on the detailed anatomical features of the Cathaysian lepidodendralean leaf cushions.
