B. Papp szerk.: Studia Botanica Hungarica 32. 2001 (Budapest, 2001)

Hably, Lilla; Zastawniak, E.: Distribution, taphonomy and palaeoecology of Ulmus L. in the Hungarian Egerian

Studia bot. hung. 32, pp. 13-32, 2001 DISTRIBUTION, TAPHONOMY AND PALAEOECOLOGY OF ULMUS L. IN THE HUNGARIAN EGERIAN L. HABLY

1 and E. ZASTAWNIAK.

2 'Department of Botany, Hungarian Natural History Museum H1476 Budapest, Pf. 222, Hungary; E-mail: hably@bot.nhmus.hu 2

Institute of Botany, Polish Academy of Sciences PL-31512 Cracow, Lubicz46, Poland; E-mail: e-zastaw@ib-pan.krakow.pl The fossil remains, mainly leaves, of the genus Ulmus L. are one of the most characteristic elements of the Hungarian Upper Oligocène (Egerian). Systematic revision confirmed the occurrence of four elm species: Ulmus pyramidalis Goepp., U. pseudopyramidalisZ. Kvacek et Hably, U. fische n'Heer, and Ulmus cf. minuta Goepp. (= U. plurinervia Ung.). They are the earliest Arctotertiary taxa in the Hungarian Tertiary. Ulmus pyramidalis Goepp. is the most widespread elm in the Hungarian Egerian. The occurrence of the various Ulmus species at different Egerian localities was dependent on the prevailing palaeoecological conditions, with the sedimentological characteristics of the fossil locality also playing an important part. Key words: Ulmus, Egerian, Hungary, palaeoecology, palaeogeography, taphonomy INTRODUCTION Several Upper Oligocène localities with plant remains have been studied taxonomically over the last 30-40 years by ANDREÁNSZKY (1966), HABLY (1982, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993a, 1994), and KVACEK and HABLY (1991). These Egerian floras have a very similar composition because they existed at the same time (i.e. Egerian, nannoplankton zone NP 24-25) and most of them represent remains of the zonal vegetation. From reconstruction of the vegetation it may be concluded that most of the species represent a palaeotropical, thermophilous element, except for a few temperate, Arctotertiary species, which represent an edaphic, intrazonal vegetation (HABLY 1993a). The most important Arctotertiary element in these floras is the genus Ulmus L. Its presence is easily recognized, even in the sandy layers, in badly preserved floras (HABLY 2001). Almost 500 specimens of elm leaves were studied taxonomically from 9 Egerian localities, including the Egerian stratotype flora at the Eger-Wind brickyard. From the upper and middle strata in this locality about 200 undetermined and unpublished specimens were studied by the authors. The material is divided among the Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest (BP), the Mátra Museum at Gyöngyös (MM), and the Kúny Domokos Museum in Tata, Hungary. Studia Botanica Hungarica 32, 2001 Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest