Glossopteris

Glossopteris
Temporal range:
Glossopteris sp.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Glossopteridales
Family: Glossopteridaceae
Genus: Glossopteris
Brongniart 1828 ex Brongniart 1831
Species
  • G. angustifolia
  • G. brasiliensis
  • G. browniana
  • G. communis
  • G. indica
  • G. occidentalis
Fossils of the gymnosperm Glossopteris (dark green) found in all of the southern continents provide strong evidence that the continents were once amalgamated into a supercontinent Gondwana

Glossopteris (etymology: from Ancient Greek γλῶσσα (glôssa, " tongue ") + πτερίς (pterís, " fern ")) is the largest and best-known genus of the extinct Permian order of seed plants known as Glossopteridales (also known as Arberiales, Ottokariales, or Dictyopteridiales). The genus Glossopteris refers only to leaves, within a framework of form genera used in paleobotany. Species of Glossopteris were the dominant trees of the middle to high-latitude lowland vegetation across the supercontinent Gondwana during the Permian Period. Glossopteris fossils were critical in recognizing former connections between the various fragments of Gondwana: South America, Africa, India, Australia, New Zealand, and Antarctica.

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