Winteraceae pollen from the miocene of the southwestern cape (south africa)

Abstract

Terrestrial back barrier deposits at Noordhoek on the Cape Peninsula contain microfossil assemblages of Miocene age which reveal the presence of extinct pollen taxa of considerable interest. These pollen types indicate the existence during the Tertiary of subtropical rainforest in these regions which was common to other Gondwana segments during the Cretaceous. Among these microfossils two genera of the Winteraceae were recorded which show strong affinities with the present Australasian taxa. They are designated as Drimys piperita‐type and Zygogynum queenslandianum‐type. The fossil record of this family in the southwestern Cape sheds light on the present disjunct distribution of the Winteraceae between Australasia, Madagascar and South America. The oldest record of the family in the Early Cretaceous of Israel and the Miocene occurrence of two genera in the Cape could point to a West Gondwana origin and early differentiation possibly in Africa before migration to Australia in the mid‐Cretaceous. Early separation of Madagascar from Africa suggests dispersal to this landmass from the south.