Wits Evolutionary Studies Institute (ESI)

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    Clarification of the genus Palaeovittaria Feistmantel
    (BERNARD PRICE INSTITUTE FOR PALAEONTOLOGICAL RESEARCH, 1987-08-06) Kovacs-Endrody, E
    Ever since the genera Palaeovittaria and Noeggerathiopsis were first established it seems that separating them has posed problems for many palaeobotanists, yet the original definitions noted clear and unambiguous generic differences in their leaf venation; these characters are now applied in the identification of South African leaves. In Palaeovittaria leaves the veins run toward the margin over the entire length of the lamina, and they radiate fan-wise in the apical portion. In Noeggerathiopsis, on the other hand, the veins appear to run parallel to the margins over the whole length of the lamina, from base to apex, and they intersect the margin only in the apical region. Interpretation of the chronostratigraphic distribution of Palaeovittaria Feistmantel, 1876 has also been problematical. It has been regarded on the one hand as a genus restricted to late Permian floras, and on the other as a very early member of Glossopteris floras, thus implying an early Permian age. The reason for this discrepancy is discussed. It is concluded that by direct interpretation of the available data, Palaeovittaria must be regarded as a late Permian taxon.
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    A structural re-interpretation and revision of the type material of the glossopterid ovuliferous fruitification Scutum from South Africa
    (Bernard Price Institute for Palaeontological Research, University of the Witwatersrand, 2011-12) Prevec, Rose
    The Early Permian glossopterid fructification Scutum, described by Edna Plumstead in the 1950s from the Vereeniging locality in the Karoo Basin of South Africa, was one of the first glossopterid seed-bearing organs to be found in organic attachment to Glossopteris leaves. Examination of the type material necessitated a revision of this plant fossil genus and a re-evaluation of described South African species. Key characteristics of the genus are the broad and prominent wing, and a low receptacle length to width ratio (<2:1). Specimens of South African Scutum are currently attributed to three species, from two localities, but display intergrading morphological features that can be reasonably accommodated within a single species, S. leslii. Three-dimensional interpretation and reconstruction of impression fossils of Scutum fructifications preserved in attachment to Glossopteris leaves confirms that the seed-bearing surface of the receptacle faces the adaxial surface of the subtending leaf. The nature of the seed scars on the receptacle and their relationship to the peripheral wing of the fructifications is clarified.