ibclogo XVI International Botanical Congess


Abstract Number: 5245
Poster No. = 951


DIVERSIFICATION OF ANGIOSPERMS IN INDIA THROUGH AGES PALAEOCENE-PLIOCENE


Samir Sarkar, Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, 53 University Road, Lucknow 226007 India


Tertiary vegetations are the fore runners of modern floras , however, impact of migration, immigration, endemism and regionalism on their development and diversity is not precisely known . The main objective ofthe present paper is to focusses the attention on the changes in vegetational patterns among angiosperms through the Tertiary period in India and its possible role on the development of modern flora. Palaeobotanical records ( both mega and micro fossils) of angiosperm published from the Tertiary period of India have been critically evaluated for the preparation of precise vegetational models clearly identifying phytogeoprovinces and their development in response to physical and biological interactions. Attempts have been made to find out the extant analogue of the fossil forms wherever possible for better understanding of the developmental processes and evolutionary significance of different forest types. Characteristic angiosperm assemblages and their bearing on climatic change have also been highlighted. Available data provide cogent evidence that a warm and moist climate prevailed over the subcontinent during the Palaeogene times.In Neogene, the climate become more arid and warm in Northern,Central and Western India, however , no significant change in the climatic conditions and the vegetational patterns of Eastern and Southern India has been noticed since Mio-Pliocene times.


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