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1. Symplocos Fruits from the Pliocene of Colombia

   https://doi.org/10.1600/036364421X16231782047398  

   Manchester, Steven R.; Lott, Terry A.; Herrera, Fabiany; Hooghiemstra, Henry; Wijninga, Vincent M.; Fritsch, Peter W. (August 2021, Systematic Botany)

   null (Ed.)

   Abstract— Fossil fruits of Symplocos (Ericales: Symplocaceae) are here recognized from the Pliocene of Guasca, Colombia, based on specimens formerly attributed to Cordia (Cordiaceae, Boraginales). Symplocos vera (Berry) comb. nov. is represented by 19 lignitized fruits. The fossils are recognized as belonging to Symplocos primarily by their woody endocarps that are apically truncate and that possess 3 to 5 apical germination pores and locules, and a central vascular canal extending the length of the endocarp. In several key characters they are highly congruent with the endocarps of the extant Neotropical clade S. ser. Symplocos . Some of the extant species in the series are variably 3- to 5-locular; 4-locular endocarps are otherwise rare in Symplocos , and 5-locular endocarps appear to be unique to this series. Symplocos vera is the only specifically named record of fossil Symplocos fruits with accessible voucher specimens from South America. The younger Neogene age of the fossils relative to those attributed to S. ser. Symplocos from the late Eocene of Texas, along with a report of Colombian fossil endocarps from the middle Miocene, supports the North America to South America migration inferred for this clade from molecular phylogenetic data. 

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2. Tooth chipping patterns and dental caries suggest a soft fruit diet in early anthropoids

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.24884  

   Towle, Ian; Borths, Matthew R; Loch, Carolina (February 2024, American Journal of Biological Anthropology)

   Fossils from the Fayum Depression, Egypt, are crucial for understanding anthropoid evolution due to the abundance of taxa and the time interval they represent (late Eocene to early Oligocene). Dietary and foraging behavioral interpretations suggest fruits were their dominant food source, although hard foods (e.g., seeds and nuts) and leaves could have been important dietary components for particular groups. In this study, we compare dental chipping patterns in five Fayum primate genera with chipping data for extant primates, to assess potential hard object feeding in early anthropoids. Materials and MethodsOriginal specimens were studied (Aegyptopithecus:n = 100 teeth;Parapithecus:n = 72,Propliopithecus:n = 99,Apidium:n = 82;Catopithecus:n = 68); with the number, severity, and position of chips recorded. Dental caries was also recorded, due to its association with soft fruit consumption in extant primates. ResultsTooth chipping was low across all five genera studied, with a pooled chipping prevalence of 5% (21/421). When split into the three anthropoid families represented, chipping prevalence ranged from 2.6% (4/154) in Parapithecidae, 6% (12/199) in Propliopithecidae, and 7.4% (5/68) in Oligopithecidae. Three carious lesions were identified in Propliopithecidae. DiscussionThe chipping prevalence is low when compared to extant anthropoids (range from 4% to 40%) and is consistent with a predominantly soft fruit diet, but not with habitual hard food mastication. The presence of caries supports consumption of soft, sugary fruits, at least in Propliopithecidae. Our results add support for low dietary diversity in early anthropoids, with soft fruits as likely dominant food sources. 

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3. Fruit ripening and postharvest changes in very early–harvested tomatoes

   https://doi.org/10.1093/hr/uhae199  

   Chen, Yao; Tang, Xuemei; Fei, Zhangjun; Giovannoni, James J (September 2024, Horticulture Research)

   Abstract It is well known that if a fruit is harvested extremely early its development and function are interrupted, and it may never attain full maturity and optimal quality. Reports revealing insights regarding the alterations of maturation, ripening and postharvest quality in very early picked fruits are rare. We examined the effects of early harvesting on tomatoes by characterizing different accessions at the molecular, physiological, and biochemical levels. We found that even very early–harvested fruits could achieve postharvest maturation and ripening though with some defects in pigment and cuticle formation, and seeds from very early–harvested fruits could still germinate and develop as normal and healthy plants. One critical regulator of tomato cuticle integrity, SlCER1–2, was shown to contribute to cuticle defects in very early–harvested fruits. Very early fruit harvest still allowing ripening and seed development indicate that the genetic and physiological programs of later maturation and ripening are set into motion early in fruit development and are not dependent on complete fruit expansion nor attachment to the plant. 

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4. Current status of freshwater red algal diversity (Rhodophyta) of the African continent including description of new taxa (Batrachospermales)

   https://doi.org/10.1080/00318884.2020.1732149  

   Szinte, Amanda L.; Taylor, Jonathan C.; Abosede, Adesalu T.; Vis, Morgan L. (April 2020, Phycologia)

   Freshwater red algae have been collected on the African continent since the early 1800s. However, the collections have been sparse and geographically restricted. The present study sought to bring together information from the literature, herbarium specimens, and newly collected specimens to provide an updated assessment of the freshwater red algal diversity of the African continent with a focus on the species-rich Batrachospermales. DNA sequence data and morphological observations were conducted for recently collected specimens. From these analyses, four new taxa are proposed: Kumanoa bouwmanii, Sheathia murpheyi, Sirodotia kennedyi, and the form taxon ‘Chantransia azurea’. DNA sequence data had been previously published for Kumanoa iriomotensis, Sirodotia aff. huillensis, and S. suecica. With this study, we have added sequence data for Torularia atra as well as a second location for S. suecica. In total, there are eight taxa with sequence data, of which five appear to be endemic. From our assessment of literature reports and herbarium specimens, we conclude that Kumanoa, Sirodotia, and Torularia have often been collected and are relatively geographically widespread with two or more species present. In addition, Montagnia, Nothocladus, Paralemanea, Sheathia, and Visia as well as Batrachospermum section Gonimopropagulum are represented in the flora. We estimate that 14 to 19 batrachospermalean taxa can be recognised for the African flora, and that with more study, that number could easily double or triple based on the diversity known from other well-studied continents. 

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5. Early Eocene infructescences from Argentine Patagonia expand the biogeography of Malvoideae

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ajb2.16384  

   Siegert, Caroline; Gandolfo, Maria A; Wilf, Peter (September 2024, American Journal of Botany)

   Abstract PremiseFossil infructescences and isolated fruits with characters of Malvoideae, a subfamily of Malvaceae (mallow family), were collected from early Eocene sediments in Chubut, Argentina. The main goals of this research are to describe and place these fossils systematically, and to explore their biogeographical implications. MethodsFossils were collected at the Laguna del Hunco site, Huitrera Formation, Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina. They were prepared, photographed, and compared with extant and fossil infructescences and fruits of various families using herbarium material and literature. ResultsThe infructescences are panicles with alternate arrangement of fruits. They bear the fruits on short pedicels that are subtended by a bract; the fruits display an infracarpelar disk and split to the base into five ovate sections interpreted as mericarps. Each mericarp is characterized by an acute apex and the presence of a longitudinal ridge. The isolated fruits show the same features as those on the infructescences. The fossils share unique features with members of the cosmopolitan family Malvaceae, subfamily Malvoideae. ConclusionsThe fossils have a unique combination of characters that does not conform to any previously described genus, justifying the erection of a new genus and species,Uiher karuen. This new taxon constitutes the first known Malvoideae reproductive fossils of the Southern Hemisphere, expanding the distribution of Malvoideae during the early Eocene. 

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