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The Early Oligocene (Rupelian) flora of Florsheim in the Mainz Basin, Germany (NP 23 zone) has been revised with the aid of leaf anatomical study. Most previous determinations suggested by the monographer of the flora, H.Engelhardt, have been found incorrect. The assemblage with notable scarcity of modern Arctotertiary elements is dominated by an ancient Arctotertiary element,Platanus neptuni (Ett.)Bůžek, Holý & Kvacek, and the Lauraceae, namelyLaurus abchasica (Kolakovskii &Shakryl)Ferguson,Laurophyllum acutimontanumMai,L. kinkelinii (Engelhardt)Kvacek, comb. n.,L. kinkelinii var.glabrumKvacek, var. n.,L. pseudoprincepsWeyland & Kilpper s.l.,L. cf.villense (Weyland & Kilpper)Kvacek,Daphnogene cinnamomifolia (Brongn.)Ung. andDaphnogene engelhardtiiKvacek, sp. n. The flora includes additional noteworthy plants:Ceratozamia floersheimensis (Engelhardt)Kvacek,Tetraclinis salicornioides (Ung.)Kvacek,Chamaecyparites hardtii (Goepp.)Endl.,Pinus ornata (Sternb.)Brongn.,P. cf.thomasiana (Goepp.)Reichenb.,Pinus grossanaLudw.,Quercus bavarica (Knobloch & Kvacek)Kvacek, comb. n.,Trigonobalanopsis rhamnoides (Rossm.)Kvacek & Walther,Eotrigonobalanus furcinervis (Rossm.)Walther & Kvacek,Gordonia hradekensis (Knobloch & Kvacek)Palamarev & Bozukov,Gordonia pseudoknauensisKvacek, sp. n.,Terstroemites floersheimensisKvacek & Walther,Populus germanica (Menzel)Walther,Sloanea artocarpites (Ettingshausen)Kvacek & Hably,Andromediphyllum ungeriKvacek, gen. et sp. n.,A. majorKvacek, sp. n.,Trachelospermophyllum steiningeriKvacek, gen. et sp. n.,Symplocos oligocaenicaKvacek, sp. n.,S. volkeriKvacek, sp. n.,Oleinites pachyphyllusKvacek, sp. n., andPalmacites lamanonisBrongn. The reconstructed fossil vegetation corresponds physiognomically and floristically to the humid subtropical Nothophyllous Broad-leaved Evergreen Forest of the East Asiatic type and indicates a warm climatic phase within the Oligocene.

Summary Old palaeobotanical collections from Early Oligocene sites at Florsheim near Mainz, Germany, and Budapest – Nagybatonyi, Hungary, contain leaflets of a cycad. The epidermal trait, rows of serially arranged short cells within bands of prosenchymatous cells, and the articulate leaflet base prove its affinity to Ceratozamia (Zamiaceae), presently endemic to Mexico, Belize and Guatemala. This is the first fossil record of this genus based on leaf epidermis evidence corroborating palaeophytogeographic links between Europe and Mexico & Central America during the Cainozoic. Ceratozamia floersheimensis (Engelhardt) comb. n. is similar to a group of extant species with coriaceous, linear – lanceolate leaflets ( C. kuesteriana and allies). It grew as dispersed undergrowth in humid – sub-humid subtropical notophyllous evergreen forests in Europe during Early Oligocene.

Summary A cone, and a seed from the late Early Oligocene of Probostov (Holý Kluk Hill) in the volcanic complex of the Ceske stiředohoiři Mts., North Bohemia (Central Europe) confirm the presence of Calocedrus in the Tertiary of Europe. The foliage intimately associated at Probostov, and occurring also in the same level at Suletice, is similar in opposite branching to some extant members of the Cupressaceae confined to the Southern Hemisphere ( Libocedrus E ndl ., Austrocedrus F lorin & B outelje , Papuacedrus L i ). Although the extant species of Calocedrus are restricted to western North America and eastern Asia, Calocedrus suleticensis (B rabenec ) comb. n. indicates the earliest fossil record of Calocedrus in Europe based on reproductive structures. It differs from the extant species by more pronounced basal pair of cone scales with subterminal mucro and oppositely branched foliage. The same kind of foliage has been recovered also in the Early Oligocene of Hungary (Eger-Kiseged) and Early Miocene of Greece (Kymi).

A new fossil representative of Polypodium L. emend. CHING (Polypodiaceae s.str.) was recovered in the Early Oligocene diatomite shales of the Ceske stredohori Mountains, North Bohemia (localities Bechlejovice, Holy Kluk hill). Polypodium radonii sp. nova is characterised on the basis of fragmentary fronds, which have simple pinnatifid laminas, entire pinnae, free, anadromously branched venation, solitary broadly elliptic superficial sori and monolete spores in situ of the Polypodiisporites bock-witzensis type. This terrestrial (? to epiphytic or epilithic) fern was associated with vegetation of subtropical Mixed Mesophytic (Holy Kluk) and warm temperate Deciduous Broad-leaved (Bechlejovice) forest types. Actual taxonomy of extant Polypodiaceae s.str. as well as the Tertiary records of this fern group within the Holarctis are reviewed.