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Prototaxites, a huge, 400 million years old, fungus? Or an enormous lichen?

VI. Literature and credits

I. The fossil
II. A fungus? (Hueber)

III. An alga? (Schweitzer)
IV. A lichen? (Selosse)

V. Miscellaneous

Literature
Altmeyer H., 1978, 1979. Die Prototaxiten von Arenrath, im Taunusquarzit, im Ems-Quarzit. Grondboor & Hamer, jg. 32-1, 32-4, 33-5.
Altmeyer H., 1973. Astnarben an Prototaxiten? Der Aufschluss, vol. 24, p. 350-356.
Boekschoten G.J. 1977. Luctor et emergo, een episode uit het Devoon. Wolters-Noordhoff.
Boyce, C.K., Hotton, C., Fogel, M., Cody, G.D., Hazen, R.M. & Knoll, A.H., 2003. Comparative geochemistry suggests Prototaxites was a gigantic fungus [Abstract]. Geological Society of America Meeting, Abstracts with Programs. 34(7): p. 587.
Boyce C.K., C. L. Hotton, M.L. Fogel, G.D. Cody, R.M. Hazen, A.H. Knoll, F.M. Hueber, 2007. Devonian landscape heterogeneity recorded by a giant fungus. Geology, 35-5: 399 – 402.
Heidtke H.J., 2006. Prototaxites: Ist der 400 Mill. Jahre alte "Monsterbaum" ein Pilz? Pollichia-Kurier 22(1), p. 16 - 17.
Hueber F.M, 2001. Rotted wood - alga - fungus: the history and life of Prototaxites. Rev. Palaeobot. Palyn. 116, p. 123 - 158.
Jonker F.P., 1979. Prototaxites in the Lower Devonian. Palaeontographica, Abt. B, Band 171, p. 19 - 56.
Kräusel R., 1964. Rätsel um Prototaxites. Fortschr. Geol. Rheinld. und Westf. 12, p. 25 - 38.
Kräusel R. en Weyland H., 1930. Die Flora des Deutschen Unterdevons. Berlijn.
Schaarschmidt, F., 1974. Mosellophyton hefteri, ein sukkulenter Halophyt aus dem Unterdevon von Alken an der Mosel. Palaeontologische Zeitschrift, Band 48, Heft 3/4 . p. 188-204.
Schmid R., 1976. Septal pores in Prototaxites, an enigmatic plant. Science, 191, p. 287-288.
Schweitzer H.-J., 1983: Die Unterdevonflora des Rheinlandes. Palaeontographica, Abt. B, Band 189, p. 1 - 138.
Schweitzer H.-J, 1990. Pflanzen erobern das Land. Kleine Senckenberg-Reihe Nr. 18, Frankfurt am Main.
Schweitzer H.-J., 2000. Neue Pflanzenfunde im Unterdevon der Eifel (Deutschland). Senckenbergiana lethaea, Band 80, p. 371 - 395.
Selosse M.-A., 2002: Prototaxites: a 400 MYR old giant fossil, a saprophytic holobasidiomycete, or a lichen? Mycological Research 106: p. 642-644.

Credits
Many people have assisted me in some way in the making of this 'multidisciplinary' article. I have a warm feeling about the helpfulness I have met.
Thanks to the following people: Dr. Peter-Jan Keizer (Utrecht), Prof. Dr. Hans Kerp (Münster), Hagen Hass (Münster), Jan Dieker (Zutphen), Jo Pijnenburg (Dieren), Elly Dogger (Ellecom), Chris van der Wilde (Arnhem), Hans van Essen (Dieren), Gerrit Goorman (Wilp), Kees van Oorde (Arnhem), Hans de Kruyk (Leerdam), Jan Drent (Doetinchem), Paul Floor (Zwolle), Joost van Leusen (Oegstgeest), Erna de Graaff (Pesse), Dr. Michael Wuttke (Mainz).

The figures of the clamp, the dolipore, the reconstruction of Prototaxites and the growth model are reproduced from the above-mentioned paper by Hueber (2001), with permission from Elsevier.

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