Late Cainozoic Floras of Iceland

Thomas Denk (*1969) is a palaeobotanist at the Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm. His research focuses on diversification patterns and evolution of Northern Hemispheric plant groups, both modern and fossil. In addition, he is interested in the vegetation and climate history of the Northern Hemisphere during the Cainozoic, in particular the differentiation of modern temperate, Mediterranean, and eastern continental biota in western Eurasia.  Friðgeir Grímsson (*1976) currently holds a Senior Post-doc position at the Department of Palaeontology, University of Vienna, Austria. He received his Ph. D. in geology/palaeontology from the University of Iceland, Reykjavík. The focus of his research has been the origin, evolution, and biogeographic affinities of Icelandic Cainozoic floras. Currently, he is studying the impact of global cooling following the Mid-Miocene climatic optimum on European palynofloras. Reinhard Zetter (*1955) is Associate Professor at the Department of Palaeontology, University of Vienna, Austria, where he also received his Ph. D. in Palaentology/Palynology. He established new methods for studying dispersed fossil pollen (single grain method) using light and scanning electron microscopy and is a world leading expert in palaeopalynology.  Leifur A. Símonarson (*1941) is Professor of Palaeontology at the Institute of Earth Sciences, University of Iceland. The focus of his research has been on the Cainozoic marine invertebrate fauna of Iceland and Greenland, and migration patterns and evolution of selected molluskan groups in the Northern Hemisphere.

• 1.  Introduction to the Nature and Geology of Iceland.- 2.  A brief Review of Palaeontological Research in Iceland.- 3. Systematic Paleobotany.- 4. The Archaic Floras (15 Ma).- 5. The Classic Surtarbrandur Floras (12 Ma).- 6. The early Late Miocene Floras (10 Ma) – First Evidence of Cool Temperate and Herbaceous Taxa.- 7. The middle Late Miocene Floras (9-8 Ma) – A Window into the Regional Vegetation Surrounding a Large Caldera.- 8. A Lakeland Area in the Late Miocene (7-6 Ma).- 9. A late Messinian Palynoflora with a distinct Taphonomy.- 10. Pliocene Terrestrial and Marine Biota of the Tjörnes Peninsula – Warm Climates and Biogeographic Re-arrangements.- 11. The Pleistocene Floras (2.4 – 0.8 Ma) – Shaping the Modern Vegetation of Iceland.- 12. The Biogeographic History of Iceland.- 13. Climate evolution in the northern North Atlantic – 15 Ma to present.- 14. Art Meets Science – The Unpublished Drawings by Carl Hedelin and Therese Ekblom.