Placing Nothophylica piloburmensis from Cretaceous amber into the angiosperm phylogeny

Abstract

Recently, we redescribed an amber inclusion from mid-Cretaceous Kachin amber of Myanmar, previously assigned to the extant genus Phylica in Rhamnaceae (core eudicots), and placed it in a new fossil-genus, Nothophylica. Based on our reconstructions, we identified new floral features and instead suggested affinities within magnoliids, especially Laurales. Using parsimony phylogenetic analyses, we here substantiate that Nothophylica piloburmensis does not possess any affinities with eudicots but shares unequivocal similarities with Laurales. Our results place Nothophylica sister to Lauraceae and Hernandiaceae.