''Sabalites'' is an
extinct genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...
of
palm
Palm most commonly refers to:
* Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand
* Palm plants, of family Arecaceae
** List of Arecaceae genera
* Several other plants known as "palm"
Palm or Palms may also refer to:
Music
* Palm (b ...
. Species belonging to the genus lived in the
late Cretaceous
The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''creta'', ...
to
Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recent" ...
and have been found in South America, North America, Europe, and Asia.
The genus is characterized by its costapalmate leaves, which consist of a radial fan of leaves that have individual pronounced midribs (costa).
The genus was erected by
Gaston de Saporta, who rejected
Oswald Heer
Oswald Heer (or Oswald von Heer) (31 August 1809 – 27 September 1883), Swiss geologist and naturalist, was born at Niederuzwil in Canton of St. Gallen and died in Lausanne.
Biography
Oswald Heer was educated as a clergyman at Halle and t ...
's previous placement of the relevant fossil species in the genus ''
Sabal
''Sabal'' is a genus of palms (or fan-palms) endemic to the New World. Currently, there are 17 recognized species of ''Sabal'', including one hybrid species. The species are native to the subtropical and tropical regions of the Americas, from th ...
''.
Species
A number of species have been described in ''Sabalites''.
:''S. californicus''
:''S. grayana''
[
:''S. montana''
:''S. oxyrhachis'']
References
Cenozoic plants
Mesozoic plants
Arecaceae
Arecaceae genera
Prehistoric angiosperm genera
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