A Paleogene flora from the upper Bonnet Plume formation of northeast Yukon Territory, Canada

Palaeontological exploration of the Bonnet Plume Basin in northwestern Yukon Territory, Canada, has revealed a Late Paleocene to Early Eocene macrofloral assemblage from a channel fill deposit. The flora is typified by cosmopolitan taxa and dominated by deciduous angiosperms, with the notable presence of Zizyphoides, Ettingshausenia, and Corylites. Floras with a similar composition are known from Late Cretaceous through Early Eocene deposits in Alaska and the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, where they have been interpreted as evidence for warm, equable temperatures. This collection represents the most diverse known Paleogene plant macrofossil assemblage from the Yukon Territory and helps to expand our knowledge of ancient high-latitude floras. L'exploration paleontologique du bassin de Bonnet Plume, dans le nord-ouest du Yukon (Canada), a revele la presence d'un assemblage macrofloral datant du Paleocene tardif a l'Eocene precoce dans un depot de remplissage de chenal. Cette flore est caracterisee par des taxons cosmopolites et dominee par des angiospermes a feuilles caduques dont, notamment Zizyphoides, Ettingshausenia et Corylites. Des flores de composition semblable sont connues de depots allant du Cretace tardif a l'Eocene precoce de l'Alaska et des iles de l'Arctique canadien, ou leur presence a ete interpretee comme temoignant de temperatures chaudes et relativement uniformes. Cette collection represente l' assemblage de macrofossiles vegetaux paleogenes le plus diversifie du Yukon et contribue a accroitre les connaissances sur les flores anciennes de hautes latitudes. [Traduit par la Redaction]
Introduction Fossil floras are some of the best empirical evidence of extreme climate change in the High Arctic and have been recognized as such for over a century (Stopes 1914; [...]