Discovery of gigantopterid plants from the upper Permian of Daha Coalfield, Qinghai Province
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Abstract:
The Tibetan Plateau contains part of the boundary between the Permian Cathaysian and Gondwanan floras. In this paper, we report a new gigantopterid fossil locality from the upper Permian of Daha Coalfield, an area close to the Wuli Coalfield in the Tuotuohe District of Qinghai Province, China. We describe five species in four genera of gigantopterid leaves collected from a mudstone bed. Among these fossils, the discovery of double-meshed gigantopterids such as Gigantopteris cf. dictyophylloides、Filigigantopteris asymmetrica and F. dahaia further demonstrates the palaeogeographic affiliation of the fossil locality with the Cathaysian Realm, and suggests the existence of a land bridg for the westward expansion of the Cathaysian flora to the Middle East. In addition, the leaves vary greatly in size. The lack of long petioles, hooks and prickles suggests that these gigantopterid plants may not be climbers.
