Rhizopalmoxylon singulare sp. nov. - coralloid palm roots from the Late Cretaceous Deccan Intertrappean beds of Nawargaon, India

Abstract

Permineralized coralloid aerial palm roots forming a thick compact mantle have been described from the Deccan Intertrappean beds of Nawargaon, Maharashtra, India. A medium sized root exhibits rhizodermis, thick exodermis, thin outer and wide inner cortex; fibers in the inner cortex; air cavities in 3-7 concentric rings in the middle zone of inner cortex; polyarch stele with 12-15 xylem and phloem bundles and sclerenchymatous pith with 1-3 medullary bundles. Morpho-anatomical characters of the root suggest its affinity with coralloid roots probably of Hyphaene dichotoma (White) Furtado and Phoenix sylvestris (L.) Roxb. A combination of details of stelar and cortical region is found to be a better criterion to resolve the natural affinity of permineralized palm roots. Two new combinations of Rhizopalmoxylon, R. angiorhizon and R. macrorhizon are also suggested.