Geology and woods of a new fossil forest from the Early Miocene of Gökçeada (Turkey)

In Gökçeada, metamorphic, sedimentary andvolcanic rocks from the period covering the Paleozoic to the Upper Mioceneperiods have formed outcrops over time. A newly identified fossil forest sitein Gökçeada covers an area of approximately 1.5 square kilometers of landsituated near the coastline. Silicified trees in the area from the earlyMiocene period were observed to present three phases of pyroclastic deposition,namely: the complete silicification phase, the half silicification phase andthe coal phase. The purpose of this study is to present the paleobiology andpaleoecology of the wood flora and the geological formation of the fossilforest site, and to evaluate this information in terms of paleoclimatology.Sixteen (16) petrified pieces of wood thought to have originated from the upperslopes and found on the sea shore were collected, with three planes of thinsections taken from each one. A total of 12 types of woods were identified, asfollows: three conifers (Cupressinoxylon, Sequoioxylon and Pinoxylon) and nineangiosperms (Alnoxylon, Carpinoxylon, Ostryoxylon, Palmoxylon type 1 and 2,Fagoxylon, Quercoxylon sect. Ilex, Laurinoxylon and Platanoxylon). The woodcomposition in Gökçeada is similar to that of the wood flora of the Miocene inLesvos, showing the presence of riparian, well-drained lowland and coastaltrees.