AkkemikIAWA & JournalSakınç – 34 Sequoioxylon (2), 2013: 177–182 from Turkey 177

SequOIoxylon PETRIFIED woods from The MID TO LATE of THRACE (Turkey)

Ünal Akkemik1,* and Mehmet Sakınç2 1Istanbul University Forestry Faculty, Forest Botany Department, 34473 Bahceköy-İstanbul, Turkey 2Istanbul Technical University, Eurasya Institute of Earth Sciences, Maslak-Istanbul, Turkey *Corresponding author; e-mail: [email protected]

Abstract Newly collected fossil woods from the mid to late Oligocene of Thrace (the European part of Turkey) were identified as Sequoioxylon Torrey, thereby ex- tending the known range of this in space and time. Keywords: Fossil wood, Hisarli Dag Volcanoes, .

Introduction Sequoioxylon woods from the Oligocene to lower Miocene have been recorded from some localities of Turkey such as Thrace (Özgüven 1971; Aras et al. 2003; Akkemik et al. 2005), north-western Anatolia (Selmeier 2001), and central Anatolia (Akkemik et al. 2009). To the west, Süss and Velitzelos (1994) described a petrified forest on the island of Lesvos (Greece), which was composed of Taxodioxylon Hartig. In the pres- ent study we report on 18 new silicified wood samples dated in mid to late Oligocene time, collected from the southern cities (Keşan and Malkara) of Thrace (Fig. 1). All

Figure 1. Geological map of Thrace and the locations of the samples (Modified from Türkecan & Yurtsever 2002).

© International Association of Wood Anatomists, 2013 DOI 10.1163/22941932-00000015 Published by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden

Downloaded from Brill.com09/27/2021 03:18:57PM via free access 178 IAWA Journal 34 (2), 2013 of them are now exhibited in the Garden of Istanbul Technical University; six are shown in Figure 2. The localities of the new samples are different from the former ones in Thrace. After preparing thin sections of transverse, radial and tangential planes, iden- tifications were performed by using reference thin sections of petrified wood samples and published references (Barefoot& Hankins 1982; Visscher & Jagels 2003; Dolezych & Van der Burgh 2004; IAWA Committee 2004; Akkemik et al. 2005; Akkemik et al. 2009; Erdei et al. 2009). All thin sections are stored in the Wood Anatomy Laboratory of the Forest Botany Department of the Forestry Faculty, Istanbul University. 25 cm 20 cm 20 cm

1 2 3

2 28 cm 10 cm 11 cm 11 4 5 6

Figure 2. Six of eighteen silicified woods from the area.

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1 2 3

4 5 6

Figure 3. Wood thin sections of some samples. – 1: Transverse section. – 2 & 3: Radial sections; 2: Ray cells with 2–5 pits per cross-field & 3: Inter-tracheid pits in up to three rows. – 4 & 5: Tangential sections. – 6: Smooth end walls of axial parenchyma cells.

Wood features and identification All of the silicified woods collected showed very similar anatomical characteristics. The features investigated are given below following the IAWA List of microscopic features for softwood identification (IAWA Committee 2004). In transverse sections of 18 samples growth ring boundaries are distinct, earlywood (EW) to latewood (LW) transition generally abrupt with a narrow to wide zone (2–10 rows of tracheids or more) of LW. Resin canals absent. Axial parenchyma cells solitary, diffuse to tangen- tially zonate, and intercellular spaces absent (Fig. 3: 1). In radial longitudinal section tracheid pit arrangement 1–3(–4), opposite, cross-field pitting taxodioid with horizon- tal opening, randomly arranged, number of pits per cross field 2–6, indentures absent,

Downloaded from Brill.com09/27/2021 03:18:57PM via free access 180 IAWA Journal 34 (2), 2013 end and horizontal walls of ray cells smooth. Ray tracheids absent (Fig. 3: 2 & 3). In tangential longitudinal section rays uniseriate (partly biseriate), ray height 5–33 cells, helical thickenings absent, and axial parenchyma end walls smooth (Fig. 3: 4–6). All of the 18 samples showed the wood characteristics of . Within this , Vischer and Jagels (2004) indicated that Taxodioxylon is clearly different from , and type woods, because of having nodular end walls in axial parenchyma. The woods of Sequoia, Sequoiadendron and Metasequoia are very similar to each other. However, some difference may be recognized. In Metasequoia wood axial parenchyma is not common (Hejnowich 1973; Gromyko 1982; Vischer & Jagels 2004), and abundant in Sequoia and Sequoiadendron (Jacquoit 1955). In all woods identified here axial parenchyma is common. Olivares et al. (2004) identified the woods as Sequoia having rays with 1–16 cells in height, wood parenchyma with smooth transverse walls, and numerous bordered pits in radial walls of tracheids, often biseriate and triseriate, and abundant (2–6) taxodioid type of cross-field pits. Based on all these features described here and the related references mentioned above, all woods were identified asSequoioxylon . The genus Sequoia, which is represented with only one species today, had a very wide distribution area throughout Europe (Süss & Velitzelos 1994; Dolezych & Van der Burgh 2004; Erdei et al. 2009) and Asia (Suzuki & Watari 1994), and in central Anatolia (Akkemik et al. 2009) and Thrace (Ozguven 1971; Akkemik et al. 2005) during Oligocene to early Miocene. With this study some contribution was made to the distribution area in Turkey.

Geological settings of the sampled area Paleogene and Neogene sediments in Thrace are represented by different litholo- gies and fossils. TPAO (Turkish Petroleum Company) and MTA (Mineral Research Exploration) results revealed that the Yenimuhacir Group with age upper –lower Miocene is represented with three lithological units (Fig. 1): Mezardere (lower Oligo- cene), Danişmen–Osmancık (mid to upper Oligocene) and Danişmen (upper Oligo- cene to lower Miocene) Formations (Siyako 2006a, 2006b). Within these formations, Danişmen–Osmancık is extremely important because of having lignite, petrol, coal and fossil beds (Boer 1954; Beer & Wright 1960; Kasar et al. 1983; Siyako 2006a) (Fig. 1). In the southern part of Thrace it has a wider area from Keşan to Istanbul in- cluding big petrified trunks with 1–4 m length and 1 m diameter (Fig. 2). All the new samples were collected from this Danişmen–Osmancık Formation. In the area Saner (1985) and Sümengen et al. (1987) described the so-called Hisarli Dag Volcanoes (Fig. 1). According to the K/Ar method, the age of volcanism is about 35 ± 0.9 million years (Ercan 1992). Activities in Hisarli Dag Volcanoes had continued from Oligo- cene to lower Miocene (Bati 1996; Bati & Siyako 2005). The identifiedSequoioxylon woods were very likely silicified following these volcanic activities in the mid to upper Oligocene.

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acknowledgementS

We thank Mustafa Celik who gave the localities of the samples and Mehmet Ali Oral who prepared the thin sections.

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Accepted: 18 January 2013

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