A new florula dominated by angiosperms from the Cenomanian of Egypt

The Cenomanian Bahariya Formation, which represents a unique stratigraphic window in Egypt, has been investigated for its plant macrofossil content. Despite being historically known for its yields of a diverse assemblage of plant lineages, this flora still needs careful investigation and reinterpretation in terms of climate and paleobiogeographic assumptions. For this purpose, a new assemblage from the Naqb as Sallam section, north Western Desert, Egypt was collected and appears to represent overbank facies as envisaged by sedimentological analysis as well as field observations.This new florula is fragmentarily preserved as impressions with a rust-colored, mineral coating, and is dominated by angiosperm leaves. The retrieved fossil leaves are categorized into nine angiosperm morphotypes that are closely similar to recently recovered morphotypes from neighboring profiles of the same age. The occurrence of charcoal in the same horizon as the leaves provides further evidence that wildfires were a relatively common source of disturbance in terrestrial ecosystems during deposition of the Bahariya Formation. Information about this florula contributes largely to filling a regional gap in our knowledge about Cenomanian floras from Egypt and its Neo-Tethys surroundings.(c) 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The Cenomanian Bahariya Formation in Egypt, known for its diverse plant macrofossil content, is being investigated and reinterpreted in terms of climate and paleobiogeography. A new fossil assemblage from the Naqb as Sallam section in the Western Desert of Egypt provides insights into the overbank facies and is dominated by angiosperm leaves. The occurrence of charcoal suggests the presence of wildfires as common disturbances in terrestrial ecosystems during the deposition of the Bahariya Formation.