Araliaephyllum, Fontaine, 1889

Halamski, Adam T., Kvaček, Jiří, Svobodová, Marcela, Durska, Ewa & Heřmanová, Zuzana, 2020, Late Cretaceous mega-, meso-, and microfloras from Lower Silesia, Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 65 (4), pp. 811-878 : 841

Araliaephyllum ? sp.

Fig. 17D.

Material.—Assemblage 6?, lower–middle Santonian: MGUWr 2704p (locality uncertain; labelled “Bunzlau”, but the specimen is in sandstone; coll. Goeppert).

Description. —The single available leaf is incomplete, preserved width ca. 41 mm, estimated width <50 mm, preserved length ca. 71 mm, estimated length ca. 78 mm. Blade attachment marginal, size notophyll; base convex, apex unknown; blade symmetrical, ovate, probably palmately lobed (trilobate), lobes probably small. Midvein stout, two main secondaries departing near the base at an angle of ca. 40°, excurrent, slightly curved admedially, interpreted as entering the lobes; in the distal part of the median lobe poorly preserved traces of weaker excurrent secondaries departing at an angle of ca. 60°. Margin entire.

Remarks.—The interpretation of this single incomplete specimen is based on the assumption that the missing parts formed lateral lobes; given the size of the parts of the leaf with incompletely preserved margin, the lobes must have been narrow and arguably relatively short. Trilobate leaves from the Turonian–Santonian of Klikov in Bohemia were described by Němejc (1961) under Araliophyllum Ettingshausen, 1868 , and from the Cenomanian of Maletín in Moravia by Greguš and Kvaček(2015) under Araliaephyllum Fontaine, 1889 (for discussion of relationships between both genera see Greguš and Kvaček 2015: 330); however, in these forms the secondaries are straight and the lateral lobes are larger. Similar forms were also described by Lesquereux (1892) and by Newberry (1895) from the Upper Cretaceous of North Amer ica. Smilacites panartius ( Bayer, 1896) Halamski and Kvaček, 2015 , from the Coniacian of Idzików is superficially similar in having the proximal part of the blade much wider than the distal one, but the base is hastate and there are no lobes; the venation pattern consists of seven primaries.

Form group Fagofolia Krassilov, 1979

Genus Dryandroides Unger, 1850

Type: Not selected.

Remarks.—The generic placement of the discussed species is purely conventional (Halamski and Kvaček 2016).

“ Dryandroides ” quercinea Velenovský, 1883

Fig. 17E.

1883 Dryandroides quercinea sp. n.; Velenovský 1883: 8 [33], pl. 2 [10]: 8a–15.

2016 “ Dryandroides ” quercinea Velenovský, 1883 ; Halamski and Kvaček 2016: 312–313; fig. 4A, B, D, E [ubi syn.].

Material.—Bolesławiec, Assemblage 8, lower–middle Santon ian: MB.Pb.2008/0360.

Description.—The available specimen is a fragment of a leaf ca. 2 cm wide and 4.5 cm long, representing the distal part without the tip of the apex, the general form of which can, however, be reconstructed. Blade shape possibly ovate, apex acuminate. Venation pattern pinnate craspedodromous, secondaries departing at ca. 45–70°. Margin serrate.

Remarks.—This single incomplete specimen is similar to Dryophyllum westerhausianum , from which it differs, however, in the apex being acuminate and not straight. It is ac- commodated in the poorly known species “ Dryandroides ” quercinea described from the Coniacian of Bohemia (see Halamski and Kvaček 2016 for revision of the type material).

Halamski and Kvaček (2016) noted that “ Dryandroides ” quercinea and Dryophyllum geinitizianum do not co-occur in Bohemian Upper Cretaceous localities. In Lower Silesia the situation is similar: the only specimen of “ Dryandroides ” quercinea is known from the Assemblage 8, whereas Dryophyllum westerhausianum is common in Assemblage 6.