Phytolaccaceae infructescence from Cerro del Pueblo formation, Upper Cretaceous (late Campanian), Coahuila, Mexico

The Upper Cretaceous (late Campanian) Cerro del Pueblo Formation, Coahuila, Mexico, contains a diverse group of angiosperms represented mainly by their reproductive structures. Among these, a new permineralized infructescence is recognized based on its morphological and anatomical characters. It is a multiple infructescence composed of berry fruits with six locules, each containing a single seed with a curved embryo developed from a campylotropous ovule with pendulous placentation; integumentary anatomy is similar to that of Phytolacca spp. (Phytolaccaceae). Though this new plant from Coahuila shares reproductive characters with Phytolacca , the constant number (six) of carpels per fruit and pendulous placentation strongly support the recognition of a new taxon, Coahuilacarpon phytolaccoides Cevallos-Ferriz, Estrada-Ruiz, et Pérez-Hernández (Phytolaccaceae, Caryophyllales). This new record adds to the known plant diversity of low latitude North America (northern Mexico) and demonstrates the long geologic history of the group.