Revision of the Pennsylvanian Flora from Val Sanagra in Western Part of the Southern Alps (Italy)

Abstract

Abstract The Pennsylvanian flora from the Alpe Logone/Val Sanagra locality in the Western Lombardy (Southern Alps, Italy) last underwent a taxonomic study in the mid 20th century. The main problem is generally poor preservation of the plant remains, which makes their identification problematic. Despite this, the authors have identified 43 fossil species from this locality. Based on the sedimentary context of this paleoflora, we assume that the Val Sanagra sediments were deposited in a continental setting, in a fluvial environment with a well-developed and vegetated floodplain where where clastic substrates would locally and occasionally change into peat swamp. The common presence of rhytidolepis and sub-rhytidolepis sigillarias, as well of Eusphenopteris neuropteroides, Lobatopteris miltonii, Mariopteris latifolia, Paripteris linguaefolia, Pecopteris microphylla, Alethopteris sp. (cf. grandinii) indicates that the flora from the Val Sanagra locality spans the interval between the Duckmantian and Bolsovian (middle Moscovian), and thus represents one of the oldest Pennsylvanian floras of the Southern Alps.