High-precision U–Pb zircon age of the early angiosperm herbaceous assemblage from the Frentsevka Formation, Far East of Russia and its implication for the timing of angiosperm diversification in Eastern Asia

Golovneva L.B., Zolina A.A., Salnikova E.B., Bugdaeva E.V., Volynets E.B., Adamskaya E.V., Kovach V.P.

Cretaceous Research 2026; 186: 106424

Isotopic data (U–Pb ID-TIMS dating) provides new evidence for the age interpretation of the upper part of the Frentsevka Formation (Partizansk coal basin, Primorye, Russia). These deposits contain numerous remains of early herbaceous angiosperm and ferns. The early Albian age (109 ± 0.5 Ma) is assigned to plant-bearing layers from the section near Bolshoy Kuvshin Cape, town of Bolshoy Kamen. Isotopic data clarified previous age estimates (early-middle Albian) based on palaeobotanical, palynological and mollusks data. The early angiosperm assemblage of the Frentsevka Formation was correlated with other early angiosperm floras from northeastern China using absolute dating. This correlation showed that the angiosperm assemblage from the Bolshoy Kuvshin locality existed at the same time as the early angiosperms from the Chengzihe Formation, Heilongjiang, China.

DOI 10.1016/j.cretres.2026.106424

Full text