Earliest floral evidence for the Ebenaceae in Australia
Flowers are seldom preserved in an identifiable condition. The limited knowledge of floral structure of ancient flowering plants makes comparisons with living plants difficult, as floral structure is the basis for classification of the angiosperms. When found, fossil flowers contribute considerably to our understanding of the evolution of flowering plants1–6. The flowers described here were recovered from Upper Eocene deposits near Anglesea, Australia. They are tetramerous, unisexual, male, with 16 stamens and tricolporate pollen. These flowers, and associated ebenaceous leaves, are the oldest known remains of the Ebenaceae from Australia.
Occurrence of Casuarina megafossils in the Tertiary of south-eastern Australia.
Casuarina megafossils are reported from three Eocene localities and one Miocene locality in south-eastern Australia. On both vegetative and reproductive characters all Eocene material shows clear affinities with the extant Division Gymnostomae. The affinities of the Miocene material are less clear. However, a shift in frequency from Gymnostomae to Cryptostomae on the Australian continent during the Tertiary is suggested. Such a change is consistent with the northward movement and the climatic deterioration which occurred on the Australian continental plate during that time.
The Cainozoic occurrence of Acacia in Australia
The occurrence of pollen grains of Acacia in several Victorian late Cainozoic deposits has been recorded. Two sporomorphs, Acacia octosporites and A. myriosporites, have been described. Some of the microfossils associated with the Acacia sporomorphs have been mentioned. A table giving the range in size and the number of pollen grains constituting the polyads of 53 species of Acacia has been included.