International Journal of Ecology and Environmental Sciences
Macrofossils of Artocarpaceae and Lauraceae from Siwalik (Upper Miocene) Sediments of Himachal Pradesh, India and their Climatic and Biogeographic Significance
Abstract
In the present investigation, a morpho-taxonomic study has been carried out on recently recovered plant macrofossils from the Siwalik Group (Middle Miocene) sediments of Sarkaghat, Mandi District, Himachal Pradesh, India. This has revealed the occurrence of two new fossil leaves belonging to the extant taxa, Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam. and Phoebe opaca Blume. of the tropical dicotyledonous families, Artocarpaceae and Lauraceae respectively. As the nearest living relatives of the macrofossils reported here, are restricted to the southern part of India and southeastern Asia (Sri Lanka, Malaya, Indonesia, and Philippines), it is plausible that tropical forests under moist conditions were prevalent during the Upper Miocene times in this region. The recovered data also indicates prevalence of tropical climatic conditions during the Miocene in the Sarkaghat and nearby area.
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References
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