THE TORTONIAN FLORA OF SWOSZOWICE AND THE PLIOCENE FLORAS OF TRANSCARPATHIA

The Tortonian (Miocene) flora of Swoszowice in the Cracow region is analyzed taxonomically and floristically. This flora, which was first described by Unger and Stur in the last century, is con-- siderably revised; of the 31 specific entities recognized, several are of wide occurrence in the Eurasian Neogene. About one-third of the flora is composed of the Poltavan element, i.e., exotic broad-leafed evergreens related to extant tropical to subtropical species. The remainder of the flora is composed of conifers and deciduous angiosperms related to extant warm-temperate to subtropical species (Turgayan element). Comparison of the Swoszowice flora with the Pliocene floras of Transcarpathia indicates that the latter are composed predominately of Turgayan species that were present in the Swoszowice flora. The warm Poltavan element, however, was eliminated in the interval — estimated to be between 8 and 11 million years — between the Swoszowic and Transcarpathian Pliocene floras, thus indicating a deterioration of climate. --J. A. Wolfe.