Ekrixanthera ehecatli

Ekrixanthera ehecatli is a species of extinct plant first described from fossilised flowers from Mexican amber. Its flowers lack pedicels and are pentamerous and staminate; they have a pistillode with reduced pilosity; glabrous heteromorphic tepals with truncate tips. Differentiating it from Ekrixanthera hispaniolae are the presence or absence of a pedicel, the heterotrophic tepals, and the presence or absence of pilosity of its pistillode and tepals. Additionally, the latter characters added to the pentamerous flowers separate the two fossil species from extant genera. Its floral structures indicate an explosive manner of pollen release as well as anemophily. Lepidopterans feeding on this species is suspected during the mid-Tertiary.[1]

Ekrixanthera ehecatli
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
(unranked):
(unranked):
(unranked):
Order:
Family:
Genus:
Ekrixanthera
Species:
E. ehecatli
Binomial name
Ekrixanthera ehecatli
Poinar, Kevan & Jackes, 2016

References

  1. Poinar, George; Kevan, Peter G.; Jackes, Betsy R. (2016). "Fossil species in Boehmerieae (Urticaceae) in Dominican and Mexican amber: a new genus (Ekrixanthera) and two new species with anemophilous pollination by explosive pollen release, and possible lepidopteran herbivory1". Botany. 94 (8): 599–606. doi:10.1139/cjb-2016-0006. ISSN 1916-2790.


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