Zelkova zelkovifolia (UNGER) BŮŽEK et KOTL., 1963

Denk, Thomas, Sami, Marco, Teodoridis, Vasilis & Martinetto, Edoardo, 2022, The Late Early Pleistocene Flora Of Oriolo, Faenza (Italy): Assembly Of The Modern Forest Biome, Fossil Imprint 78 (1), pp. 217-262 : 230

Zelkova zelkovifolia (UNGER) BŮŽEK et KOTL., 1963

Text-figs 6m , 7a–d

1847 Ulmus zelkovifolia UNGER , p. 94 pro parte, pl. 24, figs 9–13, not fig. 8.

1963 Zelkova zelkovifolia (UNGER) BŮŽEK et KOTL. in Kotlaba, p. 59, pl. 3, figs 7, 8.

M a t e r i a l. Oriolo MSF 633, 639, 675, 681?, 682-1, 683, 685?, 811, 812, 813, 814, 815, 816, 817?, 818, 819-1, 820, 850; Tebano MSF n.n.; Santa Lucia delle Spianate MSF n.n.

D e s c r i p t i o n. Leaf, petiolate, lamina elliptical to ovate, lamina length 25–49 mm, width 16–25 mm, apex acute, base obtuse, sometimes slightly asymmetrical, margin serrate with coarse teeth (appearing crenate in case of blunt tooth apices), secondary venation craspedodromous, secondary veins commonly branching.

R e m a r k s. The leaves of Oriolo are similar to both the modern Z. carpinifolia (PALLAS) K.KOCH, 1849 , ranging from Turkey to northern Iran, and to the narrowly endemic Z. sicula DI PASQ., GARFI et QUÉZEL, 1992 , native to small areas in Sicily. For example, the leaf figured in Text-fig. 7d matches well leaves of Z. carpinifolia , while the leaf in Text-fig. 7b closely resembles leaves of Z. sicula ( Denk and Grimm 2005) . This last fossil is extremely similar to two fossil leaves from Riano Romano, figured by Follieri et al. (1986). Molecular data indicate that Z. sicula might be the result of a relatively recent hybridisation, with parents close to the ancestral species of Z. abelicea (LAM.) BOISS. (Crete) and the widespread Euxinian-Hyrcanian Z. carpinifolia ( Christe et al. 2014, Rucinska 2012). Roiron (1983) referred Zelkova leaves of the Plio-Pleistocene of Crespià to the modern species Z. crenata SPACH., 1841 (= Z. carpinifolia ). Because the present leaves show a mosaic of characteristics typical of two modern species, we consider them to represent the fossil-taxon Z. zelkovifolia .

Figures

Text-fig. 6. a: cf. Rubus sp., leaflet Oriolo MSF 676. b, c: cf. Sorbus. b: Oriolo MSF 821. c: MSF 677. d: Spiraea aff. cana Oriolo MSF 944. e: Rhamnus aff. cathartica Oriolo MSF 909. f–l: Ulmus affinis. f: Oriolo MSF 717. g: Oriolo MSF 725. h: Oriolo MSF 724. i: Oriolo MSF 721. j: Oriolo MSF 723. k: Oriolo MSF 637. l: Oriolo MSF 722. m: Zelkova zelkovifolia Oriolo 28 MSF 633. Scale bars 10 mm (a–f, m), 50 mm (g–l).

Text-fig. 7. a–d: Zelkova zelkovifolia. a: Fruiting twig, Oriolo MSF 639. b: Oriolo MSF 685. c: Oriolo MSF 859. d: Oriolo MSF 947. e: Unknown leaf fragment resembling Lonicera nigra L., 1753, Oriolo MSF 859. f: Crataegus aff. monogyna Oriolo MSF 639-1. g: Fagus aff. sylvatica Oriolo MSF 648. Scale bars 10 mm (a–g).