The morphometric of lycopsid sporophylls and the evaluation of their dispersal potential: an example from the Upper Devonian of Zhejiang Province, China

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have discussed the special structural adaptations of Late Palaeozoic lycopsids, for example, the dispersal potential of reproductive organs. Based on materials from the Upper Devonian Wutong Formation in Changxing County, Zhejiang Province, China, we now analyze the morphometric and perform some calculation to evaluate the dispersal of sporophyll units of lycopsids. RESULTS: The fossil sporophyll units are divided into two types in view of obvious difference in shape and we name two new (form) species for them. We also analyze the falling process and give the calculation method of dispersal distance. CONCLUSIONS: The fossil sporophyll units show relatively poor potential of wind dispersal compared with modern samaras, and show potential adaptation to the turbulent environment. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12862-021-01933-3.