Pankuangia haifanggouensis gen. et sp. nov., a Fossil Plant with Unknown Affinity from the Middle Jurassic Haifanggou Formation, western Liaoning, Northeast China

Abstract

Scale-like leaves and occasional club-shaped appendages collected from the Middle Jurassic Haifanggou Formation, western Liaoning, Northeast China were described. They were formerly considered by K. Pan to be dicots. But in this study we could not find the fact that they could be regarded as dicots. We are of the opinion that they would correspond to the scale leaves of a certain cycadophyte, but it is difficult to ascertain whether they are bennettitalean (e.g. Cycadolepis) or cycadalean (e.g. Deltolepis), because of the lack of their preserved cuticles. Under the circumstances, we propose a non-committal genus Pankuangia and describe P. haifanggouensis sp. nov. to accommodate the present specimens.