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New observations on Sawdonia ornata from Scotland

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 November 2011

R. J. Rayner
R. J. Rayner
Affiliation:
Plant Science Department, University College, P.O. Box 78, Cardiff CF1 1XL, Wales.
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Abstract

Recent collections of Sawdonia ornata have been made from the Strathmore Group which crops out in the Midland Valley of Scotland. The sediments are Lower Devonian, probably Emsian, in age. New morphological features discovered include planar branching of vegetative and fertile axes, abaxial emergences close to branch points and H branching. Well preserved cuticles have permitted reinterpretation of the structure of stornata, rosettes (hair bases), papillae and spines, and striated cuticle is identified as S. ornata. The morphology of sporangia and in situ spores is described. Pyritised axes have revealed details of xylem shape, maturation, changes in the vicinity of branching, tracheidal structure and the arrangement of xylem and cortex in deformed axes.

Keywords

abaxialannularcortexcuticleH branchpapillaeplanarpseudomonopodialrosettesporangiastomatracheidxylem.
Type
Research Article
Information
Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of The Royal Society of Edinburgh , Volume 74 , Issue 2 , 1983 , pp. 79 - 93
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Society of Edinburgh 1983

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