Abstract
AbstractA new species,Tsuga nanfengensissp. nov. (Pinaceae), is described on the basis of lignified fossil wood from the late Miocene of the Xianfeng Basin, central Yunnan, southwestern China. Detailed observation of the fossil wood specimens show the following characteristics: distinct growth rings, absence of resin canals, uniseriate bordered pits in the radial wall of tracheids, ray tracheids and piceoid and cupressoid cross‐field pits. These features indicate similarities to the wood of extantTsuga canadensis, T. chinensis, andT. dumosa. According to the fossil record,Tsugawas present in Xundian County during the Miocene. TodayTsugais drought intolerant, preferring wet conditions with no extant species growing naturally in Xundian County. The presence ofTsugain the Miocene of Xundian County indicates a humid climate consistent with previous palaeoclimatic reconstructions showing a wetter and probably shorter dry season in the Miocene, relative to the present day. Therefore, the change in the local climate such as increasing aridity through the Miocene might explain the local extinction ofTsugafrom central Yunnan.
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