Cryptospores
Encyclopedia
Cryptospores are fossil
ised primitive plant spores that first appear in the fossil
record during the late Ordovician
to early Silurian
period.
s and decrease in abundance with distance offshore. This suggests that any cryptospores found in the marine
environment were transported there by the wind from the land, rather than originating from the marine environment.
s, thought to be the most primitive land plants, also have this spore wall morphology
.
have been found in Oman
with cryptospores showing concentric lamellae in their walls, similar to liverworts.
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
ised primitive plant spores that first appear in the fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
record during the late Ordovician
Ordovician
The Ordovician is a geologic period and system, the second of six of the Paleozoic Era, and covers the time between 488.3±1.7 to 443.7±1.5 million years ago . It follows the Cambrian Period and is followed by the Silurian Period...
to early Silurian
Silurian
The Silurian is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Ordovician Period, about 443.7 ± 1.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Devonian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya . As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period's start and end are well identified, but the...
period.
Occurrence
Cryptospores are generally found in non-marine rockRock (geology)
In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
s and decrease in abundance with distance offshore. This suggests that any cryptospores found in the marine
Marine (ocean)
Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...
environment were transported there by the wind from the land, rather than originating from the marine environment.
Wall Ultrastructure
The walls of cryptospores consist of many lamellae (thin sheets). LiverwortMarchantiophyta
The Marchantiophyta are a division of bryophyte plants commonly referred to as hepatics or liverworts. Like other bryophytes, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in which cells of the plant carry only a single set of genetic information....
s, thought to be the most primitive land plants, also have this spore wall morphology
Comparative anatomy
Comparative anatomy is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy of organisms. It is closely related to evolutionary biology and phylogeny .-Description:...
.
Chemical composition
(Some) cryptospores are composed of sporopollenin and have the same chemical makeup as co-occurring trilete spores.Other information
Recently, fossils of plant sporangiaSporangium
A sporangium is an enclosure in which spores are formed. It can be composed of a single cell or can be multicellular. All plants, fungi, and many other lineages form sporangia at some point in their life cycle...
have been found in Oman
Oman
Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...
with cryptospores showing concentric lamellae in their walls, similar to liverworts.