XVI International Botanical Congess

Outcrops of the Catahoula Formation (Oligocene) of central Texas near Huntsville have yielded an interesting assemblage of palms (Arecaceae), protomimosoids (Fabaceae), trigonobalanoid oaks (Fagaceae), and walnuts (Juglandaceae). The floral elements present within these units exhibit close affinities to both the Eocene Claiborne Formation of Tennessee and other western Tertiary floras, such as the Florrisant. Stratigraphic, sedimentological and taphonomic studies of the Oligocene coastal plain alluvial system are compared to a modern analogue. The modern analogues from the Texas Coastal Plain are thus used to generate a paleoecological model for the depositional environment responsible for preserving the Catahoula flora in east Texas.