Glossopteris Leaf Structure and Vegetative Stem Affinities

舌叶蕨属是广泛分布于南方大陆的植物化石类群。古植物学家曾详细研究过这一植物属的遗迹，但从未将树叶、种子和木材解剖的不同观察结果结合在一起。凯瑟琳·皮格博士找到了矿化标本，其中个别植物的不同部分被关联地保存下来。仔细研究这些化石可能有助于了解舌蕨属植物的整体解剖结构。重建舌蕨属物种的解剖结构将产生广泛的影响。除了澄清分离的植物部分的混乱分类和分类外，这项研究还将记录茎-叶连接的性质，以及单个叶的脉系统。这些解剖特征对我们理解这个重要的植物群至关重要，并将为我们提供一个新的窗口，了解它在裸子植物进化和开花植物起源中的地位。

Glossopteris is a fossil plant group distributed widely among the southern continents. Paleobotanists have studied the remains of this plant genus in detail, but have never brought together the disparate observations of leaves, seeds, and wood anatomy. Dr. Kathleen Pigg has located mineralized specimens wherein different parts of individual plants have been preserved in association. Careful study of these fossils may illuminate the anatomy of the Glossopteris plant as a whole. Reconstructing the anatomy of Glossopteris species will have wide impact. In addition to clarifying the confused taxonomy and classification of disassociated plant parts, this research will document the nature of stem-leaf connections, and the vein systems of individual leaves. These anatomical features are critical to our understanding of this important plant group, and will offer a new window into its place in the evolution of gymnosperms and the origin of flowering plants.