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- Title
Palaeobotany of Madeira Island: historical perspective of the leaf-beds and collections of S. Jorge and Porto da Cruz.
- Authors
Marques, Carlos A. Góis; de Sequeira, Miguel Menezes; Madeira, José
- Abstract
In the winter of 1853-1854, Sir Charles Lyell (1797-1875) travelled to Madeira Island in search of evidence for the gradual build-up of oceanic islands from the sea-floor into a sub-aerial stage. On January 18, 1854, along with George Hartung (1821-1891), he found a leaf-bed with fossils of laurels and ferns at S. Jorge. Three collections of fossil leaves are known: those collected by Lyell in 1854, and studied by Bunbury in 1859; a second by Hartung that was sent to Oswald Heer (1809-1883), and studied in 1857; and a third, probably also collected by Hartung during 1854-1857, which was published in 1864. Subsequent geological surveys during the century lead to the discovery of a second leaf bed at Porto da Cruz. From this site three collections are known: one by Hartung in 1864, another obtained by Starkie Gardner (1844-1930) and published in 1882, and a third collected by G.W. Grabham (1882-1955) that remained unpublished. These collections have nowadays fewer specimens due to degradation and misplacement; they are housed at the Natural History Museum (London), the Sedgwick Museum (Cambridge) and at Eidgenõssische Technische Hochschule (Zurich).
- Subjects
PALEOBOTANY; LAUREL; FERNS
- Publication
Silva Lusitana, 2014, Vol 22, p87
- ISSN
0870-6352
- Publication type
Article