Erdtmanithecales is an extinct order of
gymnosperm
The gymnosperms ( ; ) are a group of woody, perennial Seed plant, seed-producing plants, typically lacking the protective outer covering which surrounds the seeds in flowering plants, that include Pinophyta, conifers, cycads, Ginkgo, and gnetoph ...
plants known from the
Mesozoic era. Known remains include pollen organs and seeds associated with ''
Eucommiidites'' pollen, which is considered diagnostic for the order. The order was first described in 1996.
While ''Eucommiidites'' pollen first appears in the Early Jurassic, associated floral remains are not found until the Early Cretaceous. It is thought that the group are closely related to
Gnetales
Gnetophyta () is a division of plants (alternatively considered the subclass Gnetidae or order Gnetales), grouped within the gymnosperms (which also includes conifers, cycads, and ginkgos), that consists of some 70 species across the three Relict ...
as well as possibly
Bennettitales.
Systematics
* Order Erdtmanithecales Friis and Pedersen 1996
**family Erdtrnanithecaeae Friis and Pedersen 1996
***''
Erdtmanitheca'' Pedersen, Crane & Friis, 1989
(pollen organ)
****''Erdtmanitheca portucalensis'' Mendes et al., 2010 (Aptian-Albian),
Lusitanian Basin, Portugal
****''Erdtmanitheca texensis'' Pedersen, Crane & Friis, 1989
Woodbine Formation
The Woodbine Group is a geological formation in east Texas whose strata date back to the Early to Middle Cenomanian age of the Late Cretaceous. It is the producing formation of the giant East Texas Oil Field (also known as the "Black Giant") fr ...
, Texas, USA,
Cenomanian
The Cenomanian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy's (ICS) geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age (geology), age of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or the lowest stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Cretace ...
***''
Erdtmanispermum'' Pedersen, Crane & Friis, 1989
(seeds)
****''Erdtmanispermum juncalense'' Mendes et al., 2007 Berriasian,
Lusitanian Basin, Portugal
****''Erdtmanispermum balticum'' Pedersen, Crane & Friis, 1989
Jydegard formation, Denmark, Berriasian-Valanginian
***''
Eucommiitheca'' Friis and Pedersen 1996
(pollen organ)
****''Eucommiitheca hirsuta'' Friis and Pedersen 1996 Barremian-Aptian, Lusitanian Basin, Portugal
***''
Bayeritheca'' Kvaček and Pacltová, 2001
(pollen organ)
****''Bayeritheca hugesii''
Peruc-Korycany Formation, Bohemia, Czech Republic, Cenomanian
** ''
Incertae sedis
or is a term used for a taxonomy (biology), taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertainty ...
''
***''
Araripestrobus'' Seyfullah, E.A.Roberts, A.R.Schmidt et L.Kunzmann, 2020
(pollen cones)
****''Araripestrobus resinosus'' Seyfullah, E.A.Roberts, A.R.Schmidt et L.Kunzmann, 2020,
Crato Formation
The Crato Formation is a geologic formation (stratigraphy), formation of Early Cretaceous (Aptian) age in northeastern Brazil's Araripe Basin. It is an important Lagerstätten, Lagerstätte (undisturbed fossil accumulation) for palaeontology, pa ...
, Brazil, Aptian
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q100907160
Prehistoric plant orders
Mesozoic plants
Prehistoric gymnosperms
Gymnosperm orders