Carpolithes mettenii (Unger) Winterscheid, 2018

Winterscheid, Heinrich, 2018, Nomenclatural novelties and typifications in Spinopalmoxylon, Sapindoidea and Carpolithes (fossil Magnoliidae) from central European Paleogene and Neogene, Phytotaxa 347 (3), pp. 224-234 : 230-232

Carpolithes mettenii (Unger) Winterscheid , comb. nov. ( Fig. 4A–P )

Basionym:— Pistacia mettenii Unger (1860: 46 ; pl. 21, fig. 15)

Diagnosis in protologue:—“ P. Mettenii, fructu drupaceo subgloboso anguloso subcompresso diametri 5– 8 m.m.” ( Unger 1860: 46).

Type (neotype, designated here):— GERMANY. Hesse: Bad Salzhausen near Nidda in Vogelsberg,—[ind. loc.: “In geanthrace ad Niddam Wetteraviae.” Unger (1860: 46)]: MfN, coll. Ludwig [ MB.Pb.2005/0705.1!]. Fig. 4.A–E .

Stratigraphy:—Middle Miocene (Langhian) brown-coal of intravolcanic sediment-deposits (“Carpolithen-Kohle von Salzhausen”).

Additional specimens examined (syntypes):— GERMANY. Hesse: Bad Salzhausen near Nidda in Vogelsberg; middle Miocene (Langhian) brown-coal of intravolcanic sediment-deposits (“Carpolithen-Kohle von Salzhausen”): MfN, coll. Ludwig [ MB.Pb.2005/0705.2– MB.Pb.2005/0705.13]!, illustrated in: Ludwig (1860: 141–142; pl. 60, figs 2a–f, as Trapa globosa R.Ludw. ) and Kirchheimer (1936: 101–103; pl. 11, figs 2a–g, as Spondiaecarpum turbinatum Menzel ).

Additional specimens examined:— GERMANY. North Rhine-Westphalia: Adendorf clay-pit; early Miocene, Köln Formation, lignite seam at the base of the pit: STIPB, coll. Gossmann [765 P], [1312 P]. STIPB, coll. Winterscheid [AD-41.1], [AD-41.2], [AD-41.3]. GERMANY. North Rhine-Westphalia: former open-cast mine “Vereinigte Ville” near Hürth; early Miocene (Burdigalian), Ville Formation (Layer 6 A): STIPB, coll. Winterscheid [VV-II-7]. GERMANY. North Rhine-Westphalia: former open-cast mine “Frechen” near Cologne; early Miocene, Ville Formation: STIPB, coll. Winterscheid [Fr-VII-2].

= Carpolithes hafniensis (‘ hafniensii ’) Hartz (1909: 122–123, 278–279; pl. 5, figs 6a–c), syn. nov.

Type (not designated):— DANMARK. Zealand: Ordrup near Copenhagen : type material (syntypes) illustrated in Hartz (1909: pl. 5, figs 6a–c) ; collection data provided by Kirchheimer (1957: 118, “Mineralog.-geogn. M. Kopenhagen”); repository (communicated by A. Doweld): Natural History Museum of Denmark, Geological Museum, Copenhagen , Denmark .

Stratigraphy:—Miocene (reworked Miocene fossils in Pleistocene sands of the “Amber-Pine-Beds”).

= Spondiaecarpum turbinatum Menzel (1913: 6–9 ; pl. 1, figs 8–18), syn. nov. ≡ Carpolithus turbinatus (Menzel) Kirchheimer (1957: 118–119) ≡ Spondiaecarpum turbinatum Menzel var. nanum Nikitin (1966: 91–92 ; pl. 18, fig. 11) Type (lectotype, designated here):— GERMANY. North Rhine-Westphalia: former open-cast mine “Ribbertwerk” near Hermühlheim south-west of Cologne: MfN, coll. Menzel [MB.Pb.2004/1100.1 (orig.-no. 449)!], illustrated in: Menzel (1913: pl. 1, fig. 12). Fig.

4.L–P.

Stratigraphy:—Early Miocene (Burdigalian), Ville Formation (Layer 6A).

Additional specimens examined (syntypes):— GERMANY. North Rhine-Westphalia: former open-cast mine “Ribbertwerk” near Hermühlheim south-west of Cologne ; early Miocene (Burdigalian), Ville Formation (Layer 6 A): MfN, coll. Menzel [ MB.Pb.2004/1100.2– MB.Pb.2004/1100.5 (orig.-no. 449)]!, [ MB.Pb.2004/1122 (orig.-no. 448)]!, illustrated in: Menzel (1913: pl. 1, figs 8–11, 13–15). GERMANY. North Rhine-Westphalia: former open-cast mine “Friedrich Wilhelm Maximilian” near Türnich south-west of Cologne ; early Miocene (Burdigalian), Ville Formation (Layer 6 A): MfN, coll. Menzel [ MB.Pb.2004/1099 (orig.-no. 450)]!, illustrated in: Menzel (1913: pl. 1, figs 16–18) .

= Ilex dardenniana Gilkinet (1922: 35–36 ; pl. 17, fig. 60), syn. nov.

Type (not designated):— BELGIUM. Namur : Champseau south of Andenne: type material (syntypes) illustrated in Gilkinet (1922: pl. 17, fig. 60) ; collection data provided by Kirchheimer (1957: 118, “? G. I. U. Lüttich”); repository (communicated by A. Doweld): University of Liège , Liège, Belgium .

Stratigraphy:—Early Miocene, clay (“argile plastique d’Andenne“).

Description:—Fruits in cross section turbinate to rounded square cross, barrel-shaped, partially flattened at the base. Apically rounded with a furrow, which is protracting over the entire apical part of the fruit, centrally located at the apex a tip shaped style-base is visible on some fruits. Base of the peduncle basally deeply recessed. On the four sides, between the longitudinal edges of the fruit, one roundish or oblique drop-shaped shield is located, which can easily picked up. On the inner side of the shields a hemispheric body which is sunken into the fruitbody is located. Fruit ligneous and hard, with four compartments and large celled sclerenchyma. Immediately after removal from the brown coal (in the pit moist state), the fruits have a matte black surface, but after weathering they become light brown with silky shine; the apical furrow is always dark brown or black. Length (basal-apical) 4.5 mm to 11.0 mm (mean value = 7.5 mm), width (median) 4.0 mm to 9.0 mm (mean value = 5.8 mm), length-width-ratio 0.71 to 1.80 (mean value = 1.32).

Notes:—The herein-treated fossil fruits are widely distributed in Oligocene and Miocene palustrine and lacustrine sediments, mostly in brown-coal deposits, in central Europe. The name Pistacia mettenii was described by Unger (1860) in his part one of Sylloge Plantarum Fossilium. The morphology of the fruits is characteristic and unique in the fossil record, but the taxonomic assignment is not yet possible. They are described under different names, which are all synonyms of Pistacia mettenii .

Ludwig (1860) described fruits with different morphological features as one taxon Trapa globosa R. Ludwig (1860: 141–142; pl. 58, figs 23–27; pl. 60, figs 2, 4, 6–7). Some of these fruits, figured by Ludwig (1860: pl. 60, figs 2a–f), have the same morphological characteristics as in the herein-treated taxon. Therefore, Trapa globosa is the oldest valid published name for these fruits from Bad Salzhausen in Vogelsberg, that were described by Kirchheimer (1936: 101–103; pl. 11, figs 2a–g) as Spondiaecarpum turbinatum Menzel. However , the name is not available, because it is basionym of Sapindoidea globosa (Ludwig 1860) Kirchheimer (1936: 90–91 ; pl. 9, figs 23–27). The next valid published name is Pistacia mettenii Unger (1860) .

The fossil-genus Spondiaecarpum Menzel (1913: 6) [type: Spondiaecarpum turbinatum Menzel (1913: 6–9 ; pl. 1, figs. 8–18)] from the early Miocene of Germany is an illegitimate later homonym of Spondiaecarpon Langeron (1899: 453) [type: Spondiaecarpon dubium Langeron (1899: 453–454 ; pl. 3, figs 2, 4)] from the Paleocene of Sézanne in France (cf. McNeill et al. 2012: ICN Art. 53.1). Spondiaecarpum turbinatum Menzel does not match the genus Spondiaecarpon Langeron or the family Anacardiaceae (cf. Kirchheimer 1936: 101–102; Mai in Mai & Walther 1991: 143–144: Gümbel & Mai 2002: 378). Spondiaecarpum turbinatum Menzel is a junior synonym of Pistacia mettenii Unger (1860: 46) from the middle Miocene brown-coal of Salzhausen. Type material of this taxon in the Universalmuseum Joanneum (Graz/ Austria) has been lost. Database queries of types in “OeTyp—Catalogue of Palaeontological Types in Austrian Collections”, available from: “https://www.oeaw.ac.at/cgi-bin/oetyp/query/” (accessed: 5 October 2017), did not match any result. For this reason and because of the taxonomic uncertainty, the author combines Carpolithes mettenii (Unger) as combinatio nova and designates a neotype from the locus typicus.

Occurrence and habitat:—In central Europe from the late Oligocene to the late Miocene, and in the early Miocene (Aquitanian) of Tomsk region in Russian Federation. Carpolithes mettenii is a species of environmental and ecological importance. The fruit remains are always found in brown-coal and coaly and pelitic lithofacies and are often associated with Glyptostrobus , Nyssa , Spirematospermum , and Spinopalmoxylon . Ecologically the species occurs in swamp and peat habitats, with equal climatic valences as the associated species ( Kirchheimer 1937, 1938; Kempf 1971).

Figures

FIGURE 4. Carpolithes mettenii (Unger) Winterscheid; Bad Salzhausen near Nidda in Vogelsberg, middle Miocene (Langhian) [A– K]; and former open-cast mine “Ribbertwerk” near Hermühlheim, lower Miocene (Burdigalian) [L–P]. A–E. Neotype of Carpolithes mettenii [MB.Pb.2005/0705.1].A–D. Lateral views. E. Apical view. F. Syntypes of Carpolithes mettenii [MB.Pb.2005/0705.2–13]. G–H. Original collection-labels. I. Syntypes illustrated in Ludwig (1860: pl. 60, figs 2a–f, as Trapa globosa R. Ludwig). K. Syntypes illustrated in Kirchheimer (1936: pl. 11, fig. 2b, as Spondiaecarpum turbinatum Menzel). L–P. Lectotype of Spondiaecarpum turbinatum [MB. Pb.2004/1100.1]. L–O. Lateral views. P. Apical view.A–E, L–P. Scale bar = 2 mm. F, I, K. Scale bar = 20 mm.