Fossil Astropanax Seem. (Araliaceae) from the early Miocene (21.73 Mya) Mush Valley plant assemblages of Ethiopia

Autor(en)

Aaron D Pan, Bonnie F Jacobs, Ellen D Currano, Morgan R Gostel, Porter P Lowry, II, Gregory M Plunkett, Julia Hoffmann, Christian Geier, Fridgeir Grimsson

Abstrakt

Astropanax is a monophyletic genus found in the Africa–Madagascar–Seychelles region whose evolutionary and biogeographic history, and that of related Araliaceae genera, are poorly known. In this paper, we report the presence of Astropanax leaves and pollen in Ethiopia 21.73 million years ago from the Mush Valley locality, which preserves leaf material with cuticles, fruits, seeds, woods, and less common biota including insects. Astropanax was part of a moist tropical forest community surrounding a volcanic crater lake and dominated by a single legume taxon (Englerodendron mulugetanum). Forty-nine leaf morphotypes have been documented at Mush and, along with Astropanax, identified taxa all have living relatives mainly confined to west, central, and east African forests. The plant genera found together at Mush include groups limited today to both lowlands (e.g. the swamp palm, Sclerosperma), and uplands (e.g. Hagenia). Astropanax species are most often found today in the uplands. Subsequent to the early Miocene, some genera present at Mush may have diverged into lineages that comprise the highland and lowland forest species known today. Araliaceae fossils are known from Paleogene localities primarily across the northern continents; the occurrence of Astropanax in the early Miocene of Ethiopia appears to represent the earliest definitive occurrence of Araliaceae on the African continent.

Organisation(en)

Department für Botanik und Biodiversitätsforschung

Externe Organisation(en)

Texas Tech University, Southern Methodist University, University of Wyoming, Botanical Research Institute of Texas, Missouri Botanical Garden, New York Botanical Garden

Journal

Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society

Band

XX

Anzahl der Seiten

23

ISSN

0024-4074

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1093/botlinnean/boaf011

Publikationsdatum

2025

Peer-reviewed

Ja

ÖFOS 2012

105117 Paläobotanik, 106008 Botanik

Schlagwörter

Link zum Portal

https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/de/publications/3164aca9-743d-403b-a12c-2ebae7966a98