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The relevance of improving the knowledge on Triassic conifers resides in that the modern clades originated during the Late Triassic-Early Jurassic. More than 30 conifer-like fossil woods are known from the Triassic strata of Argentina. Whereas some have not been linked to any family, others have been related to the "Protopinaceae", Taxaceae, Podocarpaceae, Araucariaceae, Cupressaceae, or Hirmeriellaceae (=Cheirolepidiaceae). The diversity of woods with anatomy close to derived conifers contrasts with the scarce Triassic record of leaves and micro and megasporangiate cones, which could be explained by a combination of taphonomic and evolutionary causes. In order to provide information to resolve this controversy, the anatomy and systematic affinities of Triassic permineralized conifer-like trunks and woods described to date for Argentina were reassessed. As a result of this review, it emerged that the woods previously assigned to Podocarpaceae and Taxaceae do not have enough preserved characters to support such assignment, or they have characters that are homoplasic in the context of Mesozoic gymnosperms and therefore their affinity is ambiguous. On the contrary, the reevaluation of the woods related to the Araucariaceae, Cupressaceae and Hirmeriellaceae (=Cheirolepidiaceae) allows us to support their affinity with these families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Premise of research. Phylogenetic relationships of Araucariaceae (Coniferophyta, Araucariales) are revised on the basis of the first combined data matrix for the family. Methodology. Taxon sampling includes 39 ingroup species (31 extant, 8 fossils) and outgroup species of all the remaining conifer families. Five fossil Araucaria species, one species of the genus Araucarites, and two species of the extinct genera Wairarapaia and Emwadea were included in the analyses. Character sampling includes 23 genomic regions (19 plastid, 2 nuclear, and 2 mitochondrial) and 62 morphological characters (52 discrete and 10 continuous). The phylogenetic analyses were conducted with equally weighted parsimony. Additionally, several analyses under different taxon- and gene-sampling regimes were analyzed for identifying the causes of the long-lasting controversies in the interrelationships of the three extant genera of Araucariaceeae. Pivotal results. Monophyletic Araucariaceae is the sister group of Podocarpaceae, forming the order Araucariales. Monophyly of Araucaria and Agathis is also strongly supported by the data. The results of both molecular and combined analyses indicate that Wollemia and Agathis form a clade (pagathioid clade) sister to Araucaria. Within Araucaria, the analyses support the monophyly of the four currently recognized sections: Araucaria, Bunya, Intermedia, and Eutacta. Results support the monophyly of living and fossil Araucaria (including Araucarites), whereas the remaining extinct genera are placed as the stem of the agathioid clade. In terms of the sensitivity analyses performed, results suggest that inconsistencies among previous results would be related to ingroup sampling. Conclusions. By means of a combined phylogenetic analysis, we have been able to obtain a strongly supported and well-resolved phylogeny of Araucariaceae that includes both living species and fossil species for the group. This study shows the feasibility and usefulness of phylogenetic analyses that incorporate multiple sources of evidence (molecules/morphology, living/fossil species, discrete/continuous characters). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Premise: Eocene floras of Patagonia document biotic response to the final separation of Gondwana. The conifer genus Araucaria, distributed worldwide during the Mesozoic, has a disjunct extant distribution between South America and Australasia. Fossils assigned to Australasian Araucaria Sect. Eutacta usually are represented by isolated organs, making diagnosis difficult. Araucaria pichileufensis E.W. Berry, from the middle Eocene Río Pichileufú (RP) site in Argentine Patagonia, was originally placed in Sect. Eutacta and later reported from the early Eocene Laguna del Hunco (LH) locality. However, the relationship of A. pichileufensis to Sect. Eutacta and the conspecificity of the Araucaria material among these Patagonian floras have not been tested using modern methods. Methods: We review the type material of A. pichileufensis alongside large (n = 192) new fossil collections of Araucaria from LH and RP, including multi‐organ preservation of leafy branches, ovuliferous complexes, and pollen cones. We use a total evidence phylogenetic analysis to analyze relationships of the fossils to Sect. Eutacta. Results: We describe Araucaria huncoensis sp. nov. from LH and improve the whole‐plant concept for Araucaria pichileufensis from RP. The two species respectively resolve in the crown and stem of Sect. Eutacta. Conclusions: Our results confirm the presence and indicate the survival of Sect. Eutacta in South America during early Antarctic separation. The exceptionally complete fossils significantly predate several molecular age estimates for crown Eutacta. The differentiation of two Araucaria species demonstrates conifer turnover during climate change and initial South American isolation from the early to middle Eocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]