Fossil Fruits of Pteleaecarpum Weyland-Tiliaceous, not Sapindaceous

Abstract

Tertiary fruit remains of Pteleaecarpum, which we recently interpreted as valves of winged capsules of an extinct sapindaceous genus, are now recognized as belonging to a living genus of Tiliaceae. The fossil fruits, which are common in the Tertiary of western North America, Europe, and Asia, are virtually identical in morphology and anatomy to fruits of Craigia W. W. Smith and Evans, an extant tiliaceous genus of southern China. Accordingly, we now present the following new combinations for fossil taxa: Craigia bronnii (Unger) and Craigia oregonensis (Arnold).