Geological Survey Bulletin 204 Fossil Flora of the John Day Basin, Oregon

Family BERBERIDACEÆ.

BERBERIS SIMPLEX Newb.

BERBERIS SIMPLEX Newb., Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., Vol. V, p. 514,1883; Later Extinct Floras, p. 97, Pl. LVI, fig. 2, 1898 (1899).

The type of this very distinct species still remains unique.

Locality.—Bridge Creek, Grant County, Oregon. Collected by Rev. Thomas Condon (U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 7046).

BERRERIS? GIGANTEA n. sp.

Pl. XI, fig. 1.

Leaf of large size, very thick and leathery in texture, palmately deeply three-lobed, lobes lanceolate, provided with numerous, large, triangular or triangular-lanceolate, sharp-pointed lobes; lobes provided with very thick, fleshy midrib, and an apparently continuous intramarginal vein; secondary branches very thin, arising from the midrib and passing directly or with a slight curve to the apices of the lateral lobes; finer nervation very thin, anastomosing, producing large, irregular areas.

The single magnificent specimen upon which this opinion is based remains absolutely unique. It was clearly a thick, leathery leaf, and palmately deeply three-lobed. There is no means of knowing the full length and width, as both base and apex are absent. Of the middle lobe only about 6 cm. is preserved; of the lateral lobes 8 to 11 cm. is preserved. The widest part between the lobes as now preserved measures about 13 cm. When perfect it was probably at least 15 cm. long and spread probably 18 cm. The petiole is, of course, not preserved. The nervation, as set forth in the diagnosis, is strongly marked. There is a thin intramarginal vein running around the entire margin, this being especially prominent in the interval between the lateral lobes. Each lobe is provided with a very thick, fleshy midrib, from which arise, at irregular intervals, the thin secondaries which pass to the sharp points of the lateral lobes. The other nervation produces large anastomosing areas.

I am somewhat uncertain as to the proper generic reference for this fine leaf. The late Dr. Newberry, to whom the specimen was sent and who had prepared a drawing of it, placed it provisionally in the genus Cnicus, or Carduus, as it is now called. The peculiar sharp lobes, as well as the fleshy midribs, are suggestive of the large spiny leaves of thistles, but no species of this genus, so far as I know, has palmate leaves. The individual lobes resemble the whole leaf of many species of Carduus, but the palmate character effectively excludes it.

The only genus with which I have been able to satisfactorily compare this leaf is Berberis, and the nearest species is B. trifoliolata Moric. This species, now found in southern Texas and Mexico, has ordinarily small trifoliolate leaves, but occasionally one is found in which two and sometimes all three leaflets are united for a greater or less distance at the base, thus producing a leaf of exactly the same character as the fossil under discussion. The individual leaflets of this living species are rarely more than 4 cm. in length, whereas the lobes of this fossil form must have been 10 or 12 cm. long. In the matter of lobation, nervation, and general appearance, even to the intramarginal vein, the agreement between them is perfect. For this reason I have placed this fossil under Berberis and denoted the doubt by a question mark.

Locality.—Mascall beds, Van Horn's ranch, about 12 miles west of Mount Vernon, Oregon. Collected by Rev. Thomas Condon. The type and only specimen is the property of Columbia University, New York, and is under the care of the New York Botanical Garden.