Spatial vegetation patterns potentially reflect coeval continental climate variations which are also impacted by palaeogeographical settings. Plant functional types (PFTs) and their distribution, frequently applied in ecological studies and biome modelling, serve as a tool for reconstructing palaeovegetation units and ultimately tracing palaeoecological/climate gradients. Earlier quantitative studies focusing on distribution patterns of PFTs and designed to put forward data‐model comparisons were carried out on well‐dated Middle and Late Miocene floras. Moreover, the PFT approach has been successfully applied to reconstruct Eocene vegetation patterns in several time slices at a global scale as well as in regional vegetation reconstructions throughout the Cenozoic. In the current study, a PFT approach with 41 different classes is applied on Rupelian and Chattian fossil floras of Europe and western Asia to infer spatial vegetation differences across the study area. A comprehensive palaeobotanical record including ~163 macro‐ (leaves, fruits and seeds) and microfloras was compiled. The floristic components of these palaeofloras are translated to PFTs including herbaceous to arboreal classes. The PFTs are defined using traits and climatic thresholds of key taxa, and comprise species assigned by morphological and phenological features with respect to the related ecosystem. Diversity values of each PFT are calculated for the fossil floras and spatial gradients over western Eurasia are investigated for the Rupelian and Chattian. PFT diversity maps and transects for both time slices reveal basic patterns of the vegetational structure at the continental scale. It is shown that in both time slices studied tropical and broadleaved evergreen PFTs were more diverse in the West and at lower latitudes. Consistently with the global climate evolution as known from marine archives and regional continental records their level was higher in the Rupelian compared to the Chattian. All over low diversities of xeric PFTs coincide with the previously assumed dominance of humid climate conditions in western Eurasia throughout the Oligocene, however, the reconstructed spatial gradients suggest somewhat drier conditions to the southwest and southeast of the study area.

中文翻译：

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欧洲和西亚的渐新世植被—植物功能类型反映的多样性变化和大陆格局

空间植被格局有可能反映出同期的大陆性气候变化，其也受到古地理环境的影响。植物功能类型（PFTs）及其分布，经常用于生态学研究和生物群落建模，是重建古植被单位并最终追踪古生态/气候梯度的工具。早先的定量研究集中在PFT的分布模式上，旨在提出数据模型的比较，这是对日期良好的中，晚中新世植物区系进行的。此外，PFT方法已成功地应用于在全球范围内的多个时间片中重建始新世的植被格局，以及在整个新生代地区的区域植被重建中。在目前的研究中 在欧洲和西亚的Rupelian和Chattian化石植物群上采用了41种不同类别的PFT方法，以推断研究区域内的空间植被差异。汇编了一个完整的古植物学记录，包括约163个宏观（叶子，水果和种子）和微生物区系。这些古生物的植物成分被翻译成PFT，包括草本类到乔木类。PFT是使用关键分类单元的特征和气候阈值定义的，并且包括根据相关生态系统的形态和物候特征分配的物种。计算每个PFT的多样性值以获取化石植物群，并研究欧亚大陆西部的Rupelian和Chattian的空间梯度。两个时间段的PFT多样性图和样条揭示了大陆尺度上植被结构的基本模式。结果表明，在所研究的两个时间片中，热带和阔叶常绿PFT在西部和低纬度地区都更加多样化。与海洋档案和区域大陆记录中已知的全球气候演变一致，在卢佩尔时期，其水平高于查特邦。干燥的PFTs的低多样性都与以前假设的整个渐新世在欧亚大陆西部潮湿气候条件下的优势相吻合，但是，重建的空间梯度表明研究区域的西南和东南有些干燥的条件。结果表明，在所研究的两个时间片中，热带和阔叶常绿PFT在西部和低纬度地区都更加多样化。与海洋档案和区域大陆记录中已知的全球气候演变一致，在卢佩尔时期，其水平高于查特邦。干燥的PFTs的低多样性都与以前假设的整个渐新世在欧亚大陆西部潮湿气候条件下的优势相吻合，但是，重建的空间梯度表明研究区域的西南和东南有些干燥的条件。结果表明，在所研究的两个时间片中，热带和阔叶常绿PFT在西部和低纬度地区都更加多样化。与海洋档案和区域大陆记录中已知的全球气候演变一致，在卢佩尔时期，其水平高于查特邦。干燥的PFTs的低多样性都与以前假设的整个渐新世在欧亚大陆西部潮湿气候条件下的优势相吻合，但是，重建的空间梯度表明研究区域的西南和东南有些干燥的条件。