Permian plant macrofossils from Fossilryggen, Vestfjella, Dronning Maud Land

Abstract

A low diversity plant macrofossil assemblage described from the northern section of Fossilryggen, Vestfjella, Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica, is dominated by matted leaf impressions of Glossopteris sp. cf. G. communis Feistmantel and Glossopteris sp. cf. G. spatulata Pant & Singh, and in situ finely branched Vertebraria indica Royle rootlets. Equisetalean stems, rhizomes and leaf whorls (Phyllotheca australis Brongniart emend. Townrow), isolated seeds, scale-leaves, and fragmentary gymnosperm axes represent minor components of the assemblage. The fossils are preserved in fine-grained, floodbasin sediments and dark palaeosols. Although lacking definitive biostratigraphical indices, the flora is considered to represent a Middle Permian assemblage based principally on lithological and palynological correlation with the southern section at Fossilryggen and broad similarities to mid-Permian plant assemblages elsewhere in Gondwana.