Permineralized pine cones from the Cretaceous of Vancouver Island, BritishColumbia

Two abraded, cylindrical cone specimens found in calcareous concretions fro m the Cretaceous Spray Formation (Late Campanian) of Vancouver Island, Brit ish Columbia, were sectioned using the cellulose acetate peel technique and characterized anatomically. Their sclerenchymatous pith is surrounded by a ring of separate secondary xylem bundles that lack resin canals. The outer cortical zone is sclerenchymatous and covered in a dense ramentum of trich omes that is also present on ovuliferous scale and bract bases. Vascular tr aces to the ovuliferous scales and bracts arise independently. The bract, w ith a terete trace and two lateral resin canals, lacks a distinct abaxial l obe. Ovuliferous scales are sclerotic with resin canals adaxial, abaxial, a nd between the vascular bundles. The ovuliferous scales have an intersemina l ridge that is prominent and thick near the micropylar end of the seed, th ins out near the seed chalaza, and attaches to the seed wing tissue. There are two winged seeds per scale, and the edges of the ovuliferous scale turn upward and partly enclose the seeds near the micropylar end. Seeds have a ridged sclerotesta; nucellus, megagametophyte, and embryos with eight cotyl edons are preserved. Cone structure most closely resembles fossil Pinaceae of the genus Pityostrobus. These cones have a unique combination of charact ers that distinguish them from the previously described taxa and are descri bed as Pityostrobus beardii sp. nov. A phylogenetic analysis using morpholo gical data from the ovulate cones of extant and fossil taxa of Pinaceae wit h Cryptomeria japonica (L. f.) D. Don and Sciadopitys verticillata (Thunb.) Siebold et Zucc. as outgroups was undertaken to assess the phylogenetic po sition of P. beardii within Pinaceae. Pityostrobus beardii appears to be mo st closely related to Pityostrobus bokodzensis from the Cretaceous of Russi a. These cones provide further evidence that the Pinaceae, like the angiosp erms, were undergoing a rapid Cretaceous radiation.