Miocene palynoflora from
the KRAM-P 218 leaf assemblage from
the Bełchatów Lignite Mine (Central Poland)
1 | W. Szafer Institute of Botany, Polish Academy of Sciences, Lubicz 46, 31-512 Kraków, Poland |
Publication date: 2020-03-12
Acta Palaeobotanica 2016; 56(2): 499–517
ABSTRACT
During a palynological analysis of four samples from the Bełchatów KRAM-P 218 collection of
plant macroremains 95 fossil species of sporomorphs were identified. Among the non-pollen palynomorphs was
the fossil species Desmidiaceaesporites cosmarioformis, previously not reported from fossil floras of Poland, most
probably related to the zygospores of desmids. The pollen analysis indicates the presence of a freshwater body
(probably an oxbow lake) and shows the dominant role of wetland, predominantly riparian vegetation, at the
time of sedimentation. The riparian forests probably consisted of Carya, Pterocarya, Celtis, and Ulmus, accompanied
by Alnus, Acer, Fraxinus, Juglans, Liquidambar, Vitis, Zelkova, and Salix. In mixed forests there probably
were Fagus, Quercus, Carpinus, Eucommia, Corylus, Tilioideae, and conifers, as well as some thermophilous
taxa (e.g. Castanea, Symplocos, Reevesia, Mastixiaceae, and plants producing pollen of the fossil species Tricolporopollenites
pseudocingulum). Taxodium, Nyssa, and presumably Glyptostrobus and Alnus were components
of swamp communities that might have overgrown the adjacent area with higher groundwater. Members of
the families Ericaceae, Cyrillaceae, and Clethraceae, as well as Myrica and probably also Ilex, may have been
components of swamp forests and bush swamps. Our analysis indicates that the climate was warm temperate
and moderately wet. The palynoflora is most similar in composition to the spore-pollen spectra of the X climatic
phase – the Nyssapollenites spore-pollen zone. Deposits bearing assemblages of the Nyssapollenites spore-pollen
zone were deposited during the Sarmatian and early Pannonian. Our results are consistent with those from
plant macroremains from the same collection.