Abstract Detail

Paleobotanical Section

Devore, Melanie [1], Pigg, Kathleen [2].

Fossil evidence for temperate family evolution: Rosaceae from Republic, Washington and other Okanogan Highlands Eocene sites.

Combining morphological and molecular data from extant plants with information from the fossil record is increasingly becoming essential for estimating times of divergence of lineages from higher taxonomic levels (e. g., family or above) to genera. Protocols for working with data from extant plants are well established, and the degree of resolution that can be expected from given types of molecules is becoming well known. Understanding what information can be obtained from fossils remains a less uniform process, as it is more difficult to find the essential localities and floras that are ideal for providing such data. The early middle Eocene Republic flora from northeastern Washington State is an excellent example of a diverse flora with a strong record of significant temperate angiosperm families. One family that is particularly well represented is Rosaceae, a group that shows its first documented major radiation in the fossil floras from Republic and related Okanogan Highlands sites of central British Columbia. Among the over a dozen rosaceous genera are forms that fall within three basic categories: (1) some are extant genera that are well established by the Eocene (Photinia, Nevuisia, Prunus, Oemleria); (2) others are Eocene forms are close to, but perhaps not exactly like, extant genera (cf. Spiraea, Rubus, Cratageus, Amelanchier, Malus/Pyrus, cf. Pyracantha, Hespermeles); and (3) still others are extinct genera with affinities at higher taxonomic levels (Stonebergia and other forms). Recent and ongoing studies of floral and vegetative remains from these sites show tha major lineages within the family are well established in western North America by the early middle Eocene.

Broader Impacts:

1 - Dept Of Biology & Env. Science, GC & SU Campus Box 81, MILLEDGEVILLE, GA, 31061-0001, USA
2 - Arizona State University, SCHOOL OF LIFE SCIENCES FACULTY & ADMIN, BOX 874501, Tempe, AZ, 85287-4501, USA

Keywords:
Eocene
paleobotany
phylogenetic reconstruction
Prunus
Rosaceae.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: 46
Location: Forsyth Room/Chase Park Plaza
Date: Wednesday, July 13th, 2011
Time: 11:30 AM
Number: 46006
Abstract ID:503