Brazilian Quaternary Macrofloral Record

The plant macrofossil records of Quaternary can provide important data on paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic conditions, vegetation dynamics, and plant diversity that inhabited Brazil during the last 2.6 Ma. During this period, the most abundant macrofossils are represented by angiosperm leaves and a few remains of fern fronds, usually found in deposits associated with fluvial-lacustrine paleoenvironments. Here, we present the main phytofossil records from different Quaternary sites and briefly discuss the paleoclimatic and paleoecological inferences that can be drawn from these associations. The taxonomic identifications of the Quaternary fossil leaves are mainly based on the analysis and description of their leaf architecture and on comparisons with leaves of extant taxa. Several of the fossil specimens studied may represent modern species and thus not assigned to fossil species. There are challenges facing researchers studying Quaternary fossil leaves in Brazil. We highlight some of these problems and how we can overcome these pitfalls. Finally, the progressive discovery of new Quaternary plant macrofossil localities shows that there are very positive future perspectives for meaningfully expanding the paleobotanical knowledge of this period in Brazil.