DOCSLIB.ORG

A New Chytridiomycete Fungus Intermixed with Crustacean Resting Eggs in a 407- Million-Year-Old Continental Freshwater Environment

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
A New Chytridiomycete Fungus Intermixed with Crustacean Resting Eggs in a 407- Million-Year-Old Continental Freshwater Environment A new chytridiomycete fungus intermixed with crustacean resting eggs in a 407- million-year-old continental freshwater environment Strullu-Derrien, Christine; Gora, Tomasz; Longcore, Joyce E.; Olesen, Jørgen; Kenrick, Paul; Edgecombe, Gregory D. Published in: P L o S One DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0167301 Publication date: 2016 Document version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Document license: CC BY Citation for published version (APA): Strullu-Derrien, C., Gora, T., Longcore, J. E., Olesen, J., Kenrick, P., & Edgecombe, G. D. (2016). A new chytridiomycete fungus intermixed with crustacean resting eggs in a 407-million-year-old continental freshwater environment. P L o S One, 11(12), [e0167301]. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0167301 Download date: 03. Oct. 2021 RESEARCH ARTICLE A New Chytridiomycete Fungus Intermixed with Crustacean Resting Eggs in a 407-Million- Year-Old Continental Freshwater Environment Christine Strullu-Derrien1*, Tomasz Goral2, Joyce E. Longcore3, Jørgen Olesen4, Paul Kenrick1, Gregory D. Edgecombe1 1 Department of Earth Sciences, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, United Kingdom, 2 Imaging and Analysis Centre, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, United Kingdom, 3 School of Biology and Ecology, University of Maine, 5722 Deering Hall, Orono, ME, United States of a11111 America, 4 Natural History Museum, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken, Denmark * [email protected] Abstract The 407-million-year-old Rhynie Chert (Scotland) contains the most intact fossilised OPEN ACCESS remains of an early land-based ecosystem including plants, arthropods, fungi and other Citation: Strullu-Derrien C, Goral T, Longcore JE, microorganisms. Although most studies have focused on the terrestrial component, fossil- Olesen J, Kenrick P, Edgecombe GD (2016) A New Chytridiomycete Fungus Intermixed with ised freshwater environments provide critical insights into fungal-algal interactions and the Crustacean Resting Eggs in a 407-Million-Year-Old earliest continental branchiopod crustaceans. Here we report interactions between an enig- Continental Freshwater Environment. PLoS ONE 11 matic organism and an exquisitely preserved fungus. The fungal reproductive structures are (12): e0167301. doi:10.1371/journal. intermixed with exceptionally well-preserved globular spiny structures interpreted as bran- pone.0167301 chiopod resting eggs. Confocal laser scanning microscopy enabled us to reconstruct the Editor: Jae-Hyuk Yu, University of Wisconsin fungus and its possible mode of nutrition, the affinity of the resting eggs, and their spatial Madison, UNITED STATES associations. The new fungus (Cultoraquaticus trewini gen. et sp. nov) is attributed to Chytri- Received: September 13, 2016 diomycota based on its size, consistent formation of papillae, and the presence of an internal Accepted: November 4, 2016 rhizoidal system. It is the most pristine fossil Chytridiomycota known, especially in terms of Published: December 14, 2016 rhizoidal development and closely resembles living species in the Rhizophydiales. The Copyright: © 2016 Strullu-Derrien et al. This is an spiny resting eggs are attributed to the crustacean Lepidocaris rhyniensis, dating branchio- open access article distributed under the terms of pod adaptation to life in ephemeral pools to the Early Devonian. The new fungal interaction the Creative Commons Attribution License, which suggests that, as in modern freshwater environments, chytrids were important to the mobili- permits unrestricted use, distribution, and sation of nutrients in early aquatic foodwebs. reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Data Availability Statement: All relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files. Introduction Funding: This work was supported by a Marie Direct fossil evidence of fungal interactions and fungal diversity in general is relatively limited, Curie Intra-European Fellowship for Career principally because investigation of the fossil record is underdeveloped [1]. Paradoxically, one Development (SYMBIONTS GA±2011±298735) and a FP7 SYNTHESYS grant (NL-TAF 3245) of the of the few well-studied fossil fungi sites is also one of the oldest. The 407-Myr-old Rhynie European Commission to C.S.-D for data collection Chert (Scotland, UK) preserves its biotic components in exquisite detail [2]. The cherts formed and analysis. from erupted hydrothermal fluids that periodically inundated vegetation on a low-energy PLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0167301 December 14, 2016 1 / 14 Devonian Fungal Foodweb Competing Interests: The authors have declared alluvial plain formed by a braided river channel. Minor variations in topology across the flood- that no competing interests exist. plain gave rise to habitats that ranged from terrestrial to fully freshwater [3]. Fungal interac- tions in the terrestrial environments include the earliest evidence of plant parasitism and symbiosis (e.g. [4±8]), whilst interactions in freshwater involve fungi and algae [9, 10]; the lat- ter also contain the earliest continental branchiopod crustaceans [11±13]. Fossil remains of Chytridiomycota (chytrids) and Blastocladiomycota (blastoclads) have been reported from both environments [8±10, 14±20]. These true Fungi are early diverging lineages in the fungal tree of life that reproduce with motile spores (zoospores). The body or thallus is formed by organs of reproduction (zoosporangia and resting sporangia) arising from a vegetative part consisting of rhizoids. The most prominent morphological feature of the thallus is the zoospo- rangium, a sac-like structure bearing one or more discharge tubes or exit papillae. Zoosporan- gia are thin-walled whereas resting sporangia are thick-walled structures that may germinate to produce a sporangium after a dormant period. Fossil remains of chytrids (Chytridiomycota and Blastocladiomycota) have been reported from both environments [8±10, 14±20]. Chytrids are true Fungi that are an early diverging lineage in the fungal tree of life [21, 22]. Today, chy- trids and blastoclads are ubiquitous, occurring in diverse habitats from the tropics to the arctic regions [23]. They develop in terrestrial habitats [24] as saprotrophs or obligate parasites of plants [22]. They are the dominant parasites of algae and plankton in aquatic ecosystems, and recently they have been recognised as playing a fundamental role in zooplankton production and aquatic foodwebs [25]. Here we document a new freshwater chytrid from the Rhynie Chert interacting with structures of unknown affinity. Intermixed with the fungal reproductive structures are spinose fossils that we identify as resting eggs of the branchiopod crustacean Lepidocaris rhyniensis, the post-embryonic stages of which are abundant and well-preserved in the slides. Results extend our knowledge of the early fossil record of Fungi, providing compel- ling evidence of a conserved trophic role for chytrids in one of the earliest well-documented freshwater communities. Materials and Methods We examined historical collections of Rhynie Chert preparations made during the early part of the 20th century primarily to document the fossil plants. We studied a series of thin sections housed at the Natural History Museum London (NHMUK V 15641, NHMUK V 16429, NHMUK V16432, NHMUK V16433, NHMUK V 67866, NHMUK V67867, NHMUK V 67910), the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh (NMS G.1925-9-11, NMS G.1925-9-14), and Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden (Netherlands) (RH 585). Zeiss Axioskop and Nikon Eclipse LV100ND compound microscopes were used to examine and photograph specimens with transmitted light. Depth of field was enhanced through z-stack montage. Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy (CLSM) is a form of optical microscopy that yields high resolution images of minute objects [26±28]. This method has been used for imaging chy- trid sporangia and spores in cellulose acetate peels [27] and plant and fungal tissues in thin sec- tion from the Rhynie Chert [8]. Using the latter as a proof of concept, we performed analyses on a larger scale to document the fungal association here described. The presence of Canada Balsam, which was used as a mounting medium, sometimes caused problems of significant background autofluorescence, but we were able to eliminate this by adjusting the setting and time of acquisition of data, and by applying correction parameters. In addition to the opacity of some of the fossil structures, which can inhibit fluorescence, the major difficulties encoun- tered were (1) the generally thicker petrographic thin sections, (2) the fact that the section of chert was not perfectly flat or equally thick across and (3) the variable thickness and quality of the glass coverslips. We were able to work around this problem using 40× and 60× lenses and PLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0167301 December 14, 2016 2 / 14 Devonian Fungal Foodweb by zooming on the object. CLSM represents an accurate, non-destructive methodology for col- lecting 3D morphological data on thin sections of chert. We acquired confocal images with a Nikon A1-Si laser-scanning confocal microscope. Images were recorded with pixel dimensions of 0.31 μm. Autofluorescence of the samples was excited with the following laser lines: 405-nm line of 100 mW cube laser (Coherent Inc., USA, http://www.coherent.com), 488-nm line of 50 mW sapphire laser (Coherent Inc., USA), 561-nm line of 50 mW sapphire laser (Coherent Inc., USA) and 640-nm line of 40 mW cube
Load more

Recommended publications
  • History and Philosophy of Systematic Biology
    History and Philosophy of Systematic Biology Bock, W. J. (1973) Philosophical foundations of classical evolutionary classification Systematic Zoology 22: 375-392 Part of a general symposium on "Contemporary Systematic Philosophies," there are some other interesting papers here. Brower, A. V. Z. (2000) Evolution Is Not a Necessary Assumption of Cladistics Cladistics 16: 143- 154 Dayrat, Benoit (2005) Ancestor-descendant relationships and the reconstruction of the Tree of Lif Paleobiology 31: 347-353 Donoghue, M.J. and J.W. Kadereit (1992) Walter Zimmermann and the growth of phylogenetic theory Systematic Biology 41: 74-84 Faith, D. P. and J. W. H. Trueman (2001) Towards an inclusive philosophy for phylogenetic inference Systematic Biology 50: 331-350 Gaffney, E. S. (1979) An introduction to the logic of phylogeny reconstruction, pp. 79-111 in Cracraft, J. and N. Eldredge (eds.) Phylogenetic Analysis and Paleontology Columbia University Press, New York. Gilmour, J. S. L. (1940) Taxonomy and philosophy, pp. 461-474 in J. Huxley (ed.) The New Systematics Oxford Hull, D. L. (1978) A matter of individuality Phil. of Science 45: 335-360 Hull, D. L. (1978) The principles of biological classification: the use and abuse of philosophy Hull, D. L. (1984) Cladistic theory: hypotheses that blur and grow, pp. 5-23 in T. Duncan and T. F. Stuessy (eds.) Cladistics: Perspectives on the Reconstruction of Evolutionary History Columbia University Press, New York * Hull, D. L. (1988) Science as a process: an evolutionary account of the social and conceptual development of science University of Chicago Press. An already classic work on the recent, violent history of systematics; used as data for Hull's general theories about scientific change.
    [Show full text]
  • Embryophytic Sporophytes in the Rhynie and Windyfield Cherts
    Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh: Earth Sciences http://journals.cambridge.org/TRE Additional services for Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh: Earth Sciences: Email alerts: Click here Subscriptions: Click here Commercial reprints: Click here Terms of use : Click here Embryophytic sporophytes in the Rhynie and Windyeld cherts Dianne Edwards Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh: Earth Sciences / Volume 94 / Issue 04 / December 2003, pp 397 - 410 DOI: 10.1017/S0263593300000778, Published online: 26 July 2007 Link to this article: http://journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S0263593300000778 How to cite this article: Dianne Edwards (2003). Embryophytic sporophytes in the Rhynie and Windyeld cherts. Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh: Earth Sciences, 94, pp 397-410 doi:10.1017/S0263593300000778 Request Permissions : Click here Downloaded from http://journals.cambridge.org/TRE, IP address: 131.251.254.13 on 25 Feb 2014 Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh: Earth Sciences, 94, 397–410, 2004 (for 2003) Embryophytic sporophytes in the Rhynie and Windyfield cherts Dianne Edwards ABSTRACT: Brief descriptions and comments on relationships are given for the seven embryo- phytic sporophytes in the cherts at Rhynie, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. They are Rhynia gwynne- vaughanii Kidston & Lang, Aglaophyton major D. S. Edwards, Horneophyton lignieri Barghoorn & Darrah, Asteroxylon mackiei Kidston & Lang, Nothia aphylla Lyon ex Høeg, Trichopherophyton teuchansii Lyon & Edwards and Ventarura lyonii Powell, Edwards & Trewin. The superb preserva- tion of the silica permineralisations produced in the hot spring environment provides remarkable insights into the anatomy of early land plants which are not available from compression fossils and other modes of permineralisation.
    [Show full text]
  • The Taxonomic Position of the Psilotales in the Light of Our Knowledge of Devonian Plant Life*
    THE TAXONOMIC POSITION OF THE PSILOTALES IN THE LIGHT OF OUR KNOWLEDGE OF DEVONIAN PLANT LIFE* F. P. JONKER Laboratory of Palaeobotany and Palynology, Utrecht, The Netherlands ABSTRACT exclusively Devonian Psilophytales and of the latter the Rhyniaceae are regarded The order Psilotales, containing the two recent genera Psilatum and Tnzesiptel'is only, is usually usually as the closest relatives. Among classified by taxonomists and palaeo botanists those who take this st?nd I mention G. M. in the phylum Psiiophyta. This concept is, Smith (1955), Magdefra.u in Strasburger in spite of the synangia, based on the primitive (1971) and Lcmoigne (1968c). The concept general appearance reminding one of that of the of the last mentioned author will be dis• Devonian Rhyniaceae. Numerous attempts have been made to derive both genera, including their cussed further on. Darrah (1960) states synangia, from either the Rhvniaceae or from other that the status of the putative primitive Psilophyta. These attempts' sometimes led to the nature of the plant body in the Psilotaceae acceptance of a series of missing Jinks but this concept is, however, not supported bv palaeo· is controversial although there is a strong botanical data. tendency to accept the family as a pel'sis• In the opinion of the present reporter the order tent remnant of the Psilopsida. Andrews has kept a primitive general appearance of its (1961) states that Psilatum has been reaarded Devonian ancestors but in its synangia and in its monolete spores it is more advanced. by some botanists as a very simpl~ land In its anatomy, its microphyllous leaves, and in its plant, possibly a very ancient type that gametophyte perhaps, it shows more affiinity to the has managed to survive for several hundreds phylum Lycopodiophyta.
    [Show full text]
  • Pterido Classes General Characters
    1. Class: Psilotopsida: The members of the class Psilotopsida show close resemblance in fundamental characteristics to the Silurian and Devonian members of Rhyniopsida (e.g., Rhynia, Cooksonia), Zostero- phyllopsida (e.g., Zosterophyllum) and Trimero- phytopsida (e.g., Trimerophyton, Psilophyton). Psilotopsida includes only two living genera viz., Psilotum and Tmesipteris. Characteristic Features of Class Psilotopsida: 1. The plant body is a rootless sporophyte that differentiates into a subterranean rhizome and an aerial erect shoot. 2. Branching is dichotomous in both subterranean rhizome and aerial shoot. 3. The large rhizoids borne on the rhizome absorb water and nutrients from the soil. 4. On the aerial shoots, spirally arranged scale-like (e.g., Psilotum) or leaf-like appendages (e.g., Tmesipteris) are borne. 5. Stele is protostelic or siphonostelic with sclerenchymatous pith. 6. Secondary growth is absent. 7. Bi- or trilocular sporangia are borne in the axils of leaf-like appendages. 8. Mode of sporangial development is of eusporangiate type. 9. Spores are of equal sizes and shapes i.e., homosporous. 10. The gametophytes are non-green, cylindrical, branched and subterranean. They grow as saprophytes with an associated endophytic fungus. 11.Antherozoids are spirally coiled and multi- flagellated. 2. Class. Lycopsida: This class has a long evolutionary history and is represented both by extant and extinct genera. This group first originated during the Lower Devonian period of Palaeozoic Era (ca 390 my). This class is represented by five living genera — Lycopodium, Selaginella, Phylloglossum, Styhtes, and Isoetes, and fourteen extinct genera — Asteroxylon, Baragwanathia, Protolepido- dendron, Lepidodendron, Sigillaria etc. Salient Features of the Class Lycopsida: (a) The sporophyte plant body is differentiated into definite root, stem and leaves.
    [Show full text]
  • An Alternative Model for the Earliest Evolution of Vascular Plants
    1 1 An alternative model for the earliest evolution of vascular plants 2 3 BORJA CASCALES-MINANA, PHILIPPE STEEMANS, THOMAS SERVAIS, KEVIN LEPOT 4 AND PHILIPPE GERRIENNE 5 6 Land plants comprise the bryophytes and the polysporangiophytes. All extant polysporangiophytes are 7 vascular plants (tracheophytes), but to date, some basalmost polysporangiophytes (also called 8 protracheophytes) are considered non-vascular. Protracheophytes include the Horneophytopsida and 9 Aglaophyton/Teruelia. They are most generally considered phylogenetically intermediate between 10 bryophytes and vascular plants, and are therefore essential to elucidate the origins of current vascular 11 floras. Here, we propose an alternative evolutionary framework for the earliest tracheophytes. The 12 supporting evidence comes from the study of the Rhynie chert historical slides from the Natural History 13 Museum of Lille (France). From this, we emphasize that Horneophyton has a particular type of tracheid 14 characterized by narrow, irregular, annular and/or, possibly spiral wall thickenings of putative secondary 15 origin, and hence that it cannot be considered non-vascular anymore. Accordingly, our phylogenetic 16 analysis resolves Horneophyton and allies (i.e., Horneophytopsida) within tracheophytes, but as sister 17 to eutracheophytes (i.e., extant vascular plants). Together, horneophytes and eutracheophytes form a 18 new clade called herein supereutracheophytes. The thin, irregular, annular to helical thickenings of 19 Horneophyton clearly point to a sequential acquisition of the characters of water-conducting cells. 20 Because of their simple conducting cells and morphology, the horneophytophytes may be seen as the 21 precursors of all extant vascular plant biodiversity. 22 23 Keywords: Rhynie chert, Horneophyton, Tracheophyte, Lower Devonian, Cladistics.
    [Show full text]
  • M.Sc. BOTANY SEMESTER - I BO- 7115 PAPER - I DIVERSITY of VIRUSES, MYCOPLASMA, BACTERIA and FUNGI (60 Hrs)
    ST. JOSEPH'S COLLEGE (AUTONOMOUS) M.Sc. BOTANY SEMESTER - I BO- 7115 PAPER - I DIVERSITY OF VIRUSES, MYCOPLASMA, BACTERIA AND FUNGI (60 Hrs) Unit I Five kingdom, Eight kingdom classification and Three domains of 02 hrs living organisms. Unit -II Viruses – general characters, nomenclature, classification; 08 hrs morphology, structure, transmission and replication. Purification of plant viruses. Symptoms of viral diseases in plants Mycoplasma – General characters , classification ,ultrastructure 05 hrs Unit-III and reproduction. Brief account of mycoplasmal diseases of plants- Little leaf of Brinjal. Unit -IV Bacteria –Forms, distribution and classification according to 12 hrs Bergy’s System, Classification based on DNA-DNA hybridization, 16s rRNA sequencing; Nutritional types: Autotrophic, heterotrophic, photosynthetic,chemosynthetic,saprophytic,parasitic and symbiotic ; A brief account on methonogenic bacteria ; Brief account of Actinomycetes and their importance in soil and medical microbiology. Unit – V Fungi 20 hrs General characteristics, Classification (Ainsworth 1973, McLaughlin 2001), structure and reproduction. Salient features of Myxomycota, Mastigomycotina, Zygomycotina, Ascomycotina, Basidiomycotina and Deuteromycotina and their classificafion upto class level. Unit - VI Brief account of fungal heterothallism, sex hormones and 09 hrs Parasexual cycle. Brief account of mycorrhizae,lichens, fungal symbionts in insects, fungi as biocontrol agents ( Trichoderma and nematophagous). Unit – VII Isolation, purification and culturing of microorganisms 04 hrs (bacteria and fungi). 1 PRACTICALS: Micrometry. Haemocytometer. Isolation, culture and staining techniques of Bacteria and Fungi. Type study: Stemonites, Synchytrium, Saprolegnia, Albugo, Phytophthora, Mucor/Rhizopus , Erysiphe, Aspergillus, Chaetomium, Pencillium, Morchella, Hamileia, Ustilago Lycoperdon, Cyathes, Dictyophora, Polyporus, Trichoderma, Curvularia, Alternaria, Drechslera and Pestalotia. Study of few bacterial, viral, mycoplasmal diseases in plants (based on availability).
    [Show full text]
  • Devonian As a Time of Major Innovation in Plants and Their Communities
    1 Back to the Beginnings: The Silurian-­ 2 Devonian as a Time of Major Innovation 15 3 in Plants and Their Communities 4 Patricia G. Gensel, Ian Glasspool, Robert A. Gastaldo, 5 Milan Libertin, and Jiří Kvaček 6 Abstract Silurian, with the Early Silurian Cooksonia barrandei 31 7 Massive changes in terrestrial paleoecology occurred dur- from central Europe representing the earliest vascular 32 8 ing the Devonian. This period saw the evolution of both plant known, to date. This plant had minute bifurcating 33 9 seed plants (e.g., Elkinsia and Moresnetia), fully lami- aerial axes terminating in expanded sporangia. Dispersed 34 10 nate∗ leaves and wood. Wood evolved independently in microfossils (spores and phytodebris) in continental and 35AU2 11 different plant groups during the Middle Devonian (arbo- coastal marine sediments provide the earliest evidence for 36 12 rescent lycopsids, cladoxylopsids, and progymnosperms) land plants, which are first reported from the Early 37 13 resulting in the evolution of the tree habit at this time Ordovician. 38 14 (Givetian, Gilboa forest, USA) and of various growth and 15 architectural configurations. By the end of the Devonian, 16 30-m-tall trees were distributed worldwide. Prior to the 17 appearance of a tree canopy habit, other early plant groups 15.1 Introduction 39 18 (trimerophytes) that colonized the planet’s landscapes 19 were of smaller stature attaining heights of a few meters Patricia G. Gensel and Milan Libertin 40 20 with a dense, three-dimensional array of thin lateral 21 branches functioning as “leaves”. Laminate leaves, as we We are now approaching the end of our journey to vegetated 41 AU3 22 now know them today, appeared, independently, at differ- landscapes that certainly are unfamiliar even to paleontolo- 42 23 ent times in the Devonian.
    [Show full text]
  • The Stele – a Developmental Perspective on the Diversity and Evolution of Primary Vascular 2 Architecture 3 4 Alexandru M.F
    Preprints (www.preprints.org) | NOT PEER-REVIEWED | Posted: 31 May 2020 doi:10.20944/preprints202005.0472.v1 1 The stele – a developmental perspective on the diversity and evolution of primary vascular 2 architecture 3 4 Alexandru M.F. Tomescu 5 6 Department of Biological Sciences, Humboldt State University, Arcata, California 95521, USA 7 (+1) 707‐826‐3229 [email protected] 8 9 Abstract 10 The stele concept is one of the oldest enduring concepts in plant biology. This paper reviews the 11 concept and its foundations, and builds an argument for an updated view of steles and their evolution. 12 The history of studies of stelar organization has generated a widely ranging array of definitions of the 13 stele that determine the way we classify steles and construct scenarios about the evolution of stelar 14 architecture. Because at the level of the organism biological evolution proceeds by, and is reflected in, 15 changes in development, concepts of structure need to be grounded in development in order to be 16 relevant in an evolutionary perspective. For the stele, most of the traditional definitions that 17 incorporate development have viewed it as the totality of tissues that either originate from procambium 18 – currently the prevailing view – or are bordered by a boundary layer (e.g., endodermis). A definition of 19 the stele that would bring consensus between these perspectives recasts the stele as a structural entity 20 of dual nature. Here, I review briefly the history of the stele concept, basic terminology related to stelar 21 organization, and traditional classifications of the steles.
    [Show full text]
  • Type of the Paper (Article
    life Article Dynamics of Silurian Plants as Response to Climate Changes Josef Pšeniˇcka 1,* , Jiˇrí Bek 2, Jiˇrí Frýda 3,4, Viktor Žárský 2,5,6, Monika Uhlíˇrová 1,7 and Petr Štorch 2 1 Centre of Palaeobiodiversity, West Bohemian Museum in Pilsen, Kopeckého sady 2, 301 00 Plzeˇn,Czech Republic; [email protected] 2 Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Palaeoecology, Geological Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Rozvojová 269, 165 00 Prague 6, Czech Republic; [email protected] (J.B.); [email protected] (V.Ž.); [email protected] (P.Š.) 3 Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6, Czech Republic; [email protected] 4 Czech Geological Survey, Klárov 3/131, 118 21 Prague 1, Czech Republic 5 Department of Experimental Plant Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viniˇcná 5, 128 43 Prague 2, Czech Republic 6 Institute of Experimental Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences, v. v. i., Rozvojová 263, 165 00 Prague 6, Czech Republic 7 Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Albertov 6, 128 43 Prague 2, Czech Republic * Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +420-733-133-042 Abstract: The most ancient macroscopic plants fossils are Early Silurian cooksonioid sporophytes from the volcanic islands of the peri-Gondwanan palaeoregion (the Barrandian area, Prague Basin, Czech Republic). However, available palynological, phylogenetic and geological evidence indicates that the history of plant terrestrialization is much longer and it is recently accepted that land floras, producing different types of spores, already were established in the Ordovician Period.
    [Show full text]
  • Classification of Pteridophytes Reimers, 1954
    Classification of Pteridophytes Reimers, 1954 Division Psilophytopsida • Single order Order – Psilophytales Family- Rhyniaceae Genera – Rhynia, Horneophyton, Cooksonia, Yarravia Family – Zosterophyllaceae Genus – Zosterophyllum Family – Psilophytaceae Genus – Psilophytum Family – Asteroxylaceae Genus –Asteroxylon Family Rhyniaceae: The Rhyniaceae are the simplest of the Psilophytales, often compared with the sporophyte of Anthoceros. The most important genera are Rhynia and Homeophyton from the Middle Devonian in Scotland. Genus Rhynia: The genus Rhynia from the Rhynie chert beds (Middle Devonian) in Scotland was discovered by Mackie in 1913 and fully described by Kidston and Land in 1917. This discovery established the Psilophytales as a separate and distinct taxon. Three species are known of which Rhynia major and R. gwynne-vaughani are the better known. The plants, apparently, grew in swampy marshes near volcanoes where the atmosphere contained sulphurous vapour and the soil was acid. The reconstructions are from silicified petrifications. Sporophyte of rhynia The Sporophyte: The plant body was a herbaceous sporophyte with dichotomously branching horizontal rhizomes bearing rhizoids on the underside and some of the branches grow- ing up abruptly forming aerial shoots. The aerial shoots of R. major were up to 50 cm long and 6 mm in diameter while those of R. gwynne-vaughani were shorter and more slender. The aerial branches were cylindrical and sparsely dichotomously branched. These were naked being devoid of any appendage of leaf and usually tapering upwards ending in a point or in an erect sporangium. • R. gwynne-vaughani shows hemispherical, oval or lenticular protuberances arising from the lower parts (more mature) of the aerial shoots or from the rhizomatous parts.
    [Show full text]
  • An Evidence-Based 3D Reconstruction of Asteroxylon Mackiei, the Most
    RESEARCH ARTICLE An evidence-based 3D reconstruction of Asteroxylon mackiei, the most complex plant preserved from the Rhynie chert Alexander J Hetherington1†*, Siobha´ n L Bridson1, Anna Lee Jones1,2‡, Hagen Hass3, Hans Kerp3, Liam Dolan1§* 1Department of Plant Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom; 2Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom; 3Research Group for Palaeobotany, Institute for Geology and Palaeontology, Westfa¨ lische Wilhelms-Universita¨ t Mu¨ nster, Mu¨ nster, Germany Abstract The Early Devonian Rhynie chert preserves the earliest terrestrial ecosystem and informs our understanding of early life on land. However, our knowledge of the 3D structure, and *For correspondence: development of these plants is still rudimentary. Here we used digital 3D reconstruction techniques [email protected] to produce the first well-evidenced reconstruction of the structure and development of the rooting (AJH); system of the lycopsid Asteroxylon mackiei, the most complex plant in the Rhynie chert. The [email protected] (LD) reconstruction reveals the organisation of the three distinct axis types – leafy shoot axes, root- Present address: † Institute of bearing axes, and rooting axes – in the body plan. Combining this reconstruction with Molecular Plant Sciences, School developmental data from fossilised meristems, we demonstrate that the A. mackiei rooting axis – a of Biological Sciences, University transitional lycophyte organ between the rootless ancestral state and true roots – developed from of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United root-bearing axes by anisotomous dichotomy. Our discovery demonstrates how this unique organ ‡ Kingdom; Oxford Long-term developed and highlights the value of evidence-based reconstructions for understanding the Ecology Laboratory, Department development and evolution of the first complex vascular plants on Earth.
    [Show full text]
  • Environmental Influences on the Stable Carbon Isotopic Composition of Devonian and Early Carboniferous Land Plants
    West Chester University Digital Commons @ West Chester University Earth & Space Sciences Faculty Publications Earth & Space Sciences 10-1-2019 Environmental influences on the stable carbon isotopic composition of Devonian and Early Carboniferous land plants Zhenzhu Wan Thomas J. Algeo Patricia G. Gensel Stephen E. Scheckler William E. Stein See next page for additional authors Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.wcupa.edu/geol_facpub Part of the Paleobiology Commons Authors Zhenzhu Wan, Thomas J. Algeo, Patricia G. Gensel, Stephen E. Scheckler, William E. Stein, Walter L. Cressler III, Christopher M. Berry, Honghe Xu, Harold D. Rowe, and Peter E. Sauer Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology xxx (xxxx) xxxx Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/palaeo Environmental influences on the stable carbon isotopic composition of Devonian and Early Carboniferous land plants ⁎ Zhenzhu Wana, Thomas J. Algeoa,b,c, , Patricia G. Genseld, Stephen E. Schecklere,f, William E. Steing, Walter L. Cressler IIIh, Christopher M. Berryi, Honghe Xuj, Harold D. Rowek, Peter E. Sauerl a Department of Geology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221-0013, USA b State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China c State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China d Department of Biology, University
    [Show full text]