Axelrod: The Pliocene Verdi Flora of Western Nevada 133 



resembles leaves produced by the living Ceanothus cuneatus Nuttall, which is a 

 chaparral dominant in central and southern California. The shrub also occurs 

 scattered in openings and on drier sites throughout the lower part of the yellow 

 pine forest on the west slope of the range. 



Occurrence. — Verdi, Nev.: U.S. Nat. Museum. 



Family ERICACEAE 

 Arctostaphylos verdiana n. sp. 



(PI. 23, figs. 15-16) 



Description. — Leaves obovate to oval, tips acute to subacuminate, bases cuneate to acute; 1.5 

 to 2.0 cm. long and 7 mm. to 1.2 em. wide; petiole 3 to 4 mm. long, heavy; midrib straight and 

 stout, becoming thin above; alternate secondaries departing at low angles, the lower pairs 

 reaching well upward into the upper part of the blade; tertiaries irregular; margin entire; 

 texture thick. 



Discussion. — These carbonized impressions resemble leaves produced by the liv- 

 ing Arctostaphylos nevadensis Gray, a sprawling shrub that is common throughout 

 the Sierra Nevada and higher North Coast Ranges in the middle to upper parts of 

 the pine-fir forest. The only other fossil manzanita resembling this species is 

 Arctostaphylos cuneata Brown from Salmon, Idaho (Brown, 1935, pi. 67, fig. 20). 

 It differs from A. verdiana in having a typically rounded, rather than an acute 

 tip. Among living species A. cuneata appears to be more nearly related to A. uva- 

 ursi Sprengel than to A. nevadensis. 



Occurrence. — Verdi, Nev.: U.C. Mus. Pal. (loc. P102), holotype no. 2022, para- 

 type no. 2023. 



