First Record of Fossil Wood Shimakuroxylon from the Jurassic of Qinghai–Xizang (Tibetan) Plateau
Mengyu Chen , Aowei Xie , Wentao Liu , Xiaomeng Yang , Ning Tian
Acta Geologica Sinica (English Edition) ›› 2026, Vol. 100 ›› Issue (2) : 317 -324.
As a significant component of fossil plants, fossil wood is a key proxy for reconstructing ancient floras and terrestrial palaeoclimates. Although palaeoxylology has advanced markedly over the past two decades, Jurassic wood records from the Qinghai–Xizang Plateau remain sparse, and detailed anatomical studies are lacking. Here, we describe an exceptionally preserved fossil wood specimen from the Middle Jurassic Xiali Formation in Shuanghu County, Qiangtang terrane, Xizang (Tibet), China. This fossil exhibits the typical Shimakuroxylon Philippe, Boura, Oh et Pons anatomy, that is, shimakurean radial tracheid pitting and araucarioid cross-field pitting, thereby expanding the known diversity of Middle Jurassic fossil wood in Qinghai–Xizang Plateau, refining the vegetational composition of the Xiali Formation, and providing new palaeobiogeographic evidence for understanding the distribution of Shimakuroxylon and floristic connections across eastern Asia during the Jurassic.
Middle Jurassic / palaeobiogeography / palaeoclimate / Shimakuroxylon japonicum / Xiali Formation
2026 Geological Society of China.
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