Understanding an exceptional Afropollis‐dominated flora in the middle Cretaceous palaeotropics of the southern Tethys

Abstract Afropollis is a common element in Cretaceous low‐latitude palynofloras ranging from the Barremian to the Cenomanian. Despite an abundant fossil record, its affinities are still elusive. Nine Afropollis ‐rich subsurface samples from the Cenomanian Bahariya Formation in the northern part of the Western Desert of Egypt were palynologically analysed, and the palynoflora was compared with previously published material. The geographical distribution of Afropollis ‐yielding strata was compared with known macrofloras. The Bahariya material yielded a distinct palynomorph assemblage dominated by an unusually high frequency of Afropollis jardinus , reaching up to 60.7% of the total palynomorph count. The dominance of A. jardinus may be ecologically related to a near‐coastal lacustrine or lagoonal environment. Its association with two kinds of macrofloras suggests that the plants producing A. jardinus may have been part of a tropical azonal vegetation type, either aquatic or mangrove‐like.