The oldestPinusand its preservation by fire

Research Article| April 01, 2016 The oldest Pinus and its preservation by fire Howard J. Falcon-Lang; Howard J. Falcon-Lang Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Viola Mages; Viola Mages Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Margaret Collinson Margaret Collinson Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Howard J. Falcon-Lang Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK Viola Mages Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK Margaret Collinson Department of Earth Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 15 Nov 2015 Revision Received: 22 Feb 2016 Accepted: 22 Feb 2016 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Online Issn: 1943-2682 Print Issn: 0091-7613 © 2016 Geological Society of America Geology (2016) 44 (4): 303–306. https://doi.org/10.1130/G37526.1 Article history Received: 15 Nov 2015 Revision Received: 22 Feb 2016 Accepted: 22 Feb 2016 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Howard J. Falcon-Lang, Viola Mages, Margaret Collinson; The oldest Pinus and its preservation by fire. Geology 2016;; 44 (4): 303–306. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G37526.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Pinus (Pinaceae) is a diverse conifer genus that dominates Northern Hemisphere forests today and is noteworthy for its fire-adapted traits. Here we describe the oldest known fossils attributable to the genus from the Lower Cretaceous (Valanginian, ca. 133–140 Ma) part of the Chaswood Formation of Nova Scotia, Canada. Pinus mundayi sp. nov. comprises charred long-shoots, which show a constellation of derived characters including (1) axial resin ducts with thin-walled epithelial cells in the secondary xylem and phloem, (2) fenestriform or pinoid cross-field pits, and (3) helically arranged short-shoots that pass through growth ring boundaries before distally diverging into two separate needle bases. The fossils, which are interpreted as remains of an evergreen two-needle pine, provide a new constraint on timetrees of Pinaceae evolution. Their preservation as charcoal and the occurrence of resin ducts, which produce flammable terpenes in modern pines, show that Pinus has co-occurred with fire since its Mesozoic origin. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.