Deviacer, Manchester, 1994

Smith, MacKenzie A., Greenwalt, Dale E. & Manchester, Steven R., 2023, Diverse Fruits And Seeds Of The Mid-Eocene Kishenehn Formation, Northwestern Montana, Usa, And Their Implications For Biogeography, Fossil Imprint 79 (1), pp. 37-88 : 53

Deviacer wolfei MANCHESTER

Text-fig. 7c

M a t e r i a l. USNM PAL 717328.

L o c a l i t y. Disbrow Creek.

Description. Samara 2.1 cm long, 0.7 cm wide at widest point of wing; nutlet elliptical 0.5 cm long and 0.3 cm wide; peduncle persistent, small projection pointing distally along the dorsal side of the wing near the apex of the nutlet; dorsal side of wing slightly convex; ventral side of wing becomes wider just past the nutlet apex and reaches full width ⅔ of the way to the distal end; veins originate near the nutlet apex and curve down to the ventral side of the wing, generally dichotomizing, occasionally anastomosing and cross veins with proximal veins more likely to anastomose.

R e m a r k s. Fruits of Deviacer wolfei are known from the similarly aged Nut Beds of the Clarno Formation of central Oregon; they are samaras with elliptical nutlets, persistent styles, dorsal projections and fall within the same size range and ratios ( Manchester 1994, Chen and Manchester 2015). Deviacer fruits that appear similar but are unassigned to a species are also known from the early Eocene Republic flora of eastern Washington ( Pigg et al. 2008) and early Eocene Falkland flora of British Columbia ( Smith et al. 2012). Late Paleocene fossil fruits with this morphology from Almont, North Dakota with anatomical preservation were named Paleosecuridaca PIGG, DEVORE et M.F. WOJC. ( Pigg et al. 2008) . According to those authors, similarities suggest that at least some of these fruits are assignable to Polygalaceae .

Figures

Text-fig. 7. a: USNM PAL 722490 cf. Myriophyllum fruit. Scale bar 1mm. b: USNM PAL 624027 three-valved Populus sp. capsule on pedicel. Scale bar 3mm. c: USNM PAL 717328 Deviacer wolfei samara. Scale bar 5mm. d: USNM PAL 621987 Fabaceae sp. 1 Legume fruit showing persistent style. Scale bar 2mm. e: USNM PAL 625803 Fabaceae sp. 2 fruit. Scale bar 5mm. f: USNM PAL 620816 Agrimonia sp. fruit. Scale bar 3mm. g: Modern Agrimonia pubescens fruit (image by Tracey Slotta, United States Department of Agriculture National Resource Conservation Service Plants Database). h: USNM PAL 621976 Ulmus sp. F1 fruit showing two persistent styles. Scale bar 2mm. i: DMNH EPI.48205 Ulmus sp. L1 leaf. Scale bar 1cm. j: UF 19652-86483 endocarp of Celtis sp. k: UF 19652-86484 Endocarps of Celtis sp.