Abstract

Late Devonian and Early Carboniferous miospores of Nyalam County, Xizang (Tibet), China are very abundant and commonly well preserved. The most complete and continuous miospore succession at the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary in China occurs in the extremely thick marine clastic and carbonate sequences of the Himalayan Region, Southern Xizang (Tibet), China.

The present paper provides both analysis of the qualitative and quantitative compositional development of Late Devonian-Early Carboniferous palynological assemblages from Nyalam County, Xizang (Tibet), China, and a palynological zonation based on five successive assemblage biozones: Retispora lepidophyta-Hymenozonotriletes explanatus (LE) Biozone; Retispora lepidophyta-Verrucosisporites nitidus (LN) Biozone; Vallatisporites verrucosus-Aneurospora incohatus (VI) Biozone; Cingulizonates bialatus-Auroraspora macra (BM) Biozone; and Lycospora pusilla (PU) Biozone. Based on palynological data the boundary of the Devonian-Carboniferous of the Himalayan Region, Southern Xizang (Tibet), China, the reconstruction of paleogeography and paleoecology are discussed.