Palaeogene plant fossils of Manipur and their palaeoecological significance

Authors

  • J.S Guleria Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, 53 University Road, Lucknow 226007, India
  • R.K. Hemanta Singh Department of Geology, Imphal College, Imphal- 795001, India
  • R.C. Mehrotra Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, 53 University Road, Lucknow 226007, India
  • I. Soibam Department of Earth Sciences, Manipur University, Imphal- 795003
  • Rajkumar Kishor Department of Life Sciences, Manipur University, Imphal- 795003

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54991/jop.2005.69

Keywords:

Plant fossils, Angiosperms, Late Eocene-Early Oligocene, Imphal Valley, India

Abstract

The paper describes for the first time some Palaeogene plant fossils from Manipur, Northeast India. The fossils were recovered from the late Eocene and early Oligocene sediments in the vicinity of the boundary of the Disang and Barail Groups of rocks of the Imphal Valley and its adjoining areas. All the fossils belong to Angiosperms and represent monocots and dicots. The assemblage consists of mainly dicotyledonous leaves, two types of palm leaves, a fruiting shoot, a leguminous fruit and a bark. The fossil leaves show a rich morphological diversity and indicate the existence of warm and humid tropical vegetation at the time of deposition.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Metrics

Metrics Loading ...

References

Acharyya SK, Misra ND & Nandy DR 1986. Regional geology and tectonic setting of northeast India and adjoining regions. Memoir Geological Survey of India 119: 6-12.

Awasthi N & Prasad M 1990. Siwalik plant fossils from Surai Khola area, Western Nepal. Palaeobotanist 38: 298-318.

Awasthi N & Srivastava R 1992. Fossil leaves and fruit from Warkalli beds, Kerala Coast, India. Geophytology 21: 53-57.

Axelrod DI & Bailey HP 1969. Palaeotemperature analysis of Tertiary floras. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 6: 163-195.

Bailey IW & Sinnott EW 1916. Investigations on the phylogeny of the angiosperms - 6. The climate distribution of certain types of angiosperm leaves. American Journal of Botany 3: 24-39.

Barman G & Daura BK 1970. Zalaccites jaintiensis gen. et sp. nov. from the Plateau (Cherra) sandstones of Jaintia Hills, United Khasi and Jaintia Hills District, Assam, India. Science & Culture 36: 63-64.

Bose MN & Sah SCD 1964. Fossil plant remains from Laitryngew, Assam. Palaeobotanist 12: 220-223.

Brongniart A 1828. Prodrome d'une histoire des vegetaux fossiles. Dictionnaire Sci. Nat. 57: 16-212.

Brunnschweiler RO 1966. On the geology of Indo Burman Ranges. Journal Geological Society of Australia 13: 137-195.

Burnham RJ, Pitman NCA, Johnson KR & Wilf P 2001. Habitat-related error in estimating temperature from leaf margins in a humid tropical forest. American Journal of Botany 88: 1096-1102.

Corner EJH 1966. The Natural History of Palms. Widenfeld & Nicolson, London.

Daura BK & Debadhikari B 1968. In Director General's Report, 1963-64, Geological Survey of India Records 98:7.

Dayal B & Daura BK 1966. In Director General's Report, 1962-63, Geological Survey of India Records 97: 7.

Desikachar SV 1974. A review of the tectonics and geologic history of eastern India in terms of "Plate Tectonics" theory. Journal Geological Society of India 15: 137-149.

Dilcher DL 1973. A palaeoclimatic interpretation of the Eocene floras of south-eastern North America. In: Graham A (Editor) - Vegetation and vegetational history of northern Latin America. Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company, Amsterdam: 39-59.

Dilcher DL 1974. Approaches to the identification of angiosperm leaf remains. Botanical Review 40: 1-157.

Evans P 1932. Explanatory notes to accompany a table showing the Tertiary succession in Assam. Transactions of the Mining & Geological Institute of India 27: 155-260.

Ghosh SS 1958. A new record for the fossil wood Glutoxylon from Manipur. Science & Culture 23: 431-433.

Givnish TJ 1984. Leaf and canopy adaptations in tropical forests. In: Medina E, Mooney HA & Vazquez-Yares C (Editors) - Physiological Ecology of Plants of the Wet Thics. The Hague: 51-84.

Goeppert HR 1855. Die tertiar Flora von Schossnitz in Schlesien. Gorlitz.

Guleria JS 1992. Neogene vegetation of Peninsular India. Palaeobotanist 40: 285-311.

Guleria JS & Mehrotra RC 1999. On some plant remains from Intertrappean localities of Seoni and Mandla districts of Madhya Pradesh, India. Palaeobotanist 47:68-87.

Guleria JS, Srivastava R & Prasad M 2000. Some fossil leaves from the Kasauli Formation of Himachal Pradesh, North-west India. Himalayan Geology 21: 43-52.

Hemanta Singh RK 2005. Significance of trace fossils from Disang- Barail Transition Zone, Imphal Valley. Himalayan Geology: 26: 323-326.

Hickey LJ 1973. Classification of the architecture of dicotyledonous leaves. American Journal of Botany 60: 17-33.

Joshi S & Viraktamuth CA 2004. The sugarcane woolly aphid, Ceratovaauna langifera Zehntner (Hemiptera: Aphididae): its biology, pest status and control. Current Science 87: 307-316.

Kachhara RP, Ibotambi & Moanaro JN 1998. Upper age limit of the Disang Group in Manipur. XVI Indian Colloquium on Micropalaeontology and Stratigraphy, Goa, (Abs.046): 55.

Lakhanpal RN 1964. A record of angiospermic leaf impressions from the Garo Hills, Assam. Current Science 33: 276.

Lakhanpal RN & Guleria JS 1981. Leaf-impression from the Eocene of Kachchh, western India. Palaeobotanist 28-29: 353-373.

Mahabale TS 1966. Evolutionary trends in the Palmae with special reference to fossil palms. Palaeobotanist 14: 214-222.

Mahabale TS & Rao SV 1968. Fossil palm remains from Bommuru, Andhra Pradesh. Current Science 37: 158-159.

Mahabale TS & Rao SV 1973. Fossil flora of Rajahmundry area. Proceedings of the Symposium on Deccan Trap Country, Indian National Science Academy, Bulletin Indian National Science Academy 45:192-214.

Mandaokar BD, Mehrotra RC & Mazumder BI 2004. Fossil woods from Middle Miocene sediments of Karimganj, Assam, India. Geophytology 32: 119-121.

Mani MS 2000. Plant galls of India. Oxford & IBH Publication Company Private Limited, New Delhi.

Mehrotra RC 2000a. Study of plant megafossils from the Tura Formation of Nangwalbibra, Garo Hills, Meghalaya, India. Palaeobotanist 49: 225-237.

Mehrotra RC 2000b. A new rhizome like structure from near Jowai, Jaintia Hills, Meghalaya. Palaeobotanist 49: 329-331.

/06/2024

Mehrotra RC & Bhattacharyya A 2002. Wood of Dipterocarpus from a new locality of the Champaran Formation of Tripura, India. Palaeobotanist 51: 123-127.

Mehrotra RC & Mandaokar BD 2000. Leaf impressions from Oligocene sediments of Manmao, Tirap District, Arunachal Pradesh, India. Palaeobotanist 49: 311-315.

Mehrotra RC & Mandaokar BD 2002. A new leguminous fruit from the Middle Bhuban Formation of Aizawl, Mizoram. Journal of the geological Society of India 60: 465-466.

Mehrotra RC, Pande N & Ralimongla 2004. Two fossil woods from Miocene sediments of Changki, Mokokchung district, Nagaland. Geophytology 32: 79-82.

Mehrotra RC, Tiwari RP & Mazumder BI 2003. Nypa megafossils from the Tertiary sediments of Northeast India. Geobios 36: 83-92.

Mitchell AHG 1993. Cretaceous-Cenozoic tectonic events in the western Myanmar (Burma) Assam region. Journal of the geological Society, London 150: 1089-1102.

Pascal JP & Ramesh BR 1987. A field key to the trees and lianas of the evergreen forests of the Western Ghats (India). Tome - XXIII. Institut Francais de Pondichery, India.

Read RW & Hickey LJ 1972. A revised classification of fossil palm and palm like leaves. Taxon 21: 129-137.

Saporta MD 1894. Flore Fossile du Portugal. Nouvelles Contributions a la Flore Mesozoique. Lisbonne.

Sinnott EW & Bailey IW 1915. Investigations on the phylogeny of the angiosperms. 5. Foliar evidence as to the ancestry and early climatic environment of the angiosperms. American Journal of Botany 2: 1-22.

Soibam I 1998. Structural and tectonic analysis of Manipur with special reference to evolution of the Imphal Valley. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis of Manipur University, Imphal.

Soibam I 2001. Imphal valley- A Transtensional Basin? Unpublished Project completion report, DST, New Delhi: 139. Strong DR, Lawton JH & Southwood DR 1984. Insects on Plants. Blackwell, Oxford.

Tomlinson PB 1990. The Structural Biology of Palms. Oxford.

Wiemann MC, Manchester SR, Dilcher DL, Hinolosa LF & Wheeler EA 1998. Estimation of temperature and precipitation from morphological characters of dicotyledonous leaves. American Journal of Botany 85: 1796-1802.

Wilf P, Wing SL, Greenwood DR & Greenwood CL 1998. Using fossil leaves as palaeoprecipitation indicators: An Eocene example. Geology 26: 203-206.

Wolfe JA 1995. Paleoclimatic estimates from Tertiary leaf assemblages. Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Science 23: 119-142.

Downloads

Published

2005-12-31

How to Cite

Guleria, J., Singh, R. H., Mehrotra, R., Soibam, I., & Kishor, R. (2005). Palaeogene plant fossils of Manipur and their palaeoecological significance. Journal of Palaeosciences, 54((1-3), 61–77. https://doi.org/10.54991/jop.2005.69

Issue

Section

Research Articles

Most read articles by the same author(s)

1 2 3 > >>