Abstract A revision of fossil leaflets previously attributed to Mimosa or Mimosites from Palaeogene basins in southwestern Europe resulted in the establishment of three new combinations: Parvileguminophyllum norica , P. oblita and P. deperdita . These fossil‐species coexisted under a relatively uniform climate during the Oligocene but differed in their distribution: P. deperdita grew across southern Europe, P. norica occurred in southwestern and Central Europe, and P. oblita in southwestern Europe. Morphological comparison with extant species shows strong similarities with certain Mimosa and Senegalia species that today inhabit seasonally dry tropical climates (Aw/As Köppen climate types), contrasting with the humid subtropical conditions (Cfa/Cwa) inferred for the fossil localities containing the fossil‐species. Integration of palaeoclimatic and palaeobiogeographic evidence suggests that P. norica , P. oblita and P. deperdita became extinct because of declining temperatures. Parvileguminophyllum deperdita appears to have persisted until the Late Miocene in Crete and Sicily, possibly due to their southerly positions and the ‘island buffer effect’, which may have mitigated the impacts of global cooling. These findings challenge the long‐standing assumption that Palaeogene legumes from Europe necessarily indicate arid conditions.
Tosal et al. (Fri,) studied this question.