JODES-ISRAELII SP-NOV - A HUGE PHOSPHATE-MINERALIZED ICACINACEAN FRUCTIFICATION FROM THE LATE CRETACEOUS OF THE NEGEV, SOUTHERN ISRAEL

A beautifully preserved fossil fructification nearly 3 cm in maximum d iameter was found in organic-rich Maastrichtian strata (Ghareb Formati on) of the central Negev, southern Israel. The endocarp is entirely ph osphate-mineralized, and was encountered embedded within a layer of ph osphate concretions associated with a sediment-discontinuity surface i n the lower part of the Maastrichtian Ghareb succession The fossil end ocarp is typical of those of the Recent family Icacinaceae, a pantropi cal group including trees, shrubs and climbers, distributed in primary and secondary rainforests, particularly in Malaysia and SE Asia. It i s also comparable with similar taxa from the English Eocene. The attri butes of the endocarp fir very well those of the genus Fodes. The ultr astructure of the phosphatic material and the state of preservation of the fructification suggest rapid, bacterially-induced phosphatization of the plant remains by dissolved pore phosphate, released by early d ecomposition of associated organic matter at, or near, the bottom sedi ment/water interface. A low net accretion rate related to gentle curre nt activity on the sea floor maintained the Fodes endocarp at close pr oximity to this interface where phosphate precipitation took place. Th e structural configuration of the area during Campanian-Maastrichtian times suggests the nearby Ramon High as a possible source of the fruct ification. In terms of the climate system of Troll & Pfaffen, the Fode s find also suggests tropical wet climate VI with humid summers during the Maastrichtian in Israel. (C) 1997 Academic Press Limited.