PART 3 .] 
Feistmantel: Fossil Floras in India, 
65 
III. —Flora and probable age of the Panchet group.* 
In his paper on “the Raniganj coal-field,” 1. c., Mr. IV. T. Blanford described some 
beds overlying the Damudas as the Panchet group. From this group, hoxh animal and 
plant remains are known. The first have been already described by Prof. Huxley in the 
Palieontologia Indica, Ser. IV, No. I, and determined as bones of Labifpinlhodonts 
and Dicynodonts. Besides these some Estherim were also found. These animal fossils, in 
connection with the plant remains, amongst which Mr. Oldham recognised some triassic 
forms, led to an approximate determination of the age of the Panchet group. This we 
find expressed on page 205 of Mr. Oldhams paper, 1. c. (Mem. Ill) in the following 
words: “. I feel no hesitation in expressing my belief that the Panchet group 
of the present report represents the earliest portion of the great mesozoic division in the 
general geological scale, or, in other words, is of about the same age as the Buntersand- 
stein and Keuper of Europe.” 
There is only to ho remarked, that to tills group cannot be attributed the age of two 
different European strata (as Buntersandstein and Keuper are). From a comparison ot the 
plants I must as I shall show, accept the age of the Keuper for our Panchet group. 
Mr. Oldham gave also a provisional list of the plant remains (Mem. Ill, p. 204) 
which has been reproduced in a recent paper of Mr. H. F. Blauford.f 
The list was— 
Schizoneura, 1 species. 
Tamiopteris, 1 „ 
Sphenopteris, 2 „ 
Neuropteris ? 1 „ 
Pecopteris, 2 „ 
Preisleria, 1 „ 
Of these I have been unable to find any Sphenopteris or any true Neuropteris, whilst 
with regard to the doubtful genus Preisleria, Presl, we now know from the investiga¬ 
tions of Prof. Schenk, that in the specimens which Presl described^ the leaf fragments 
belong to Zamiles distans, Presl, and that the flower or fruit-like figure (fig. 10) is an arti¬ 
ficial production, as I will point out hereafter. Our fossils, which Mr. Oldham compared with 
Preisleria, are, as I think, more.probably the fructification of some equisetaceous plant. 
As I shall before long have occasion to speak of these plant remains, as well as of the 
others, in more detail, with illustrations of the best of them, I will here only briefly notice 
the most important— 
A—EQ TJISETA GEM. 
Remains of equisetaceous plants are of frequent occurrence; one very important 
genus being especially abundant. 
Genus: Schizoneura, Schirnp. 
(Schimper et Mougeot: Monogr. d. pi. foss. du Gres bigarrd des Vosges, 1844.) 
Scliimper and Mougeot described this peculiar genus from the “Gres hi gar re’, 
(Buntsandstein) of the Vosges-mountains. But it has since beeu found also in Keuper 
and in Rhastic. There are in all about four species known. 
Tide W. T. Blanford: Memoirs, Geolog. Surv., Ill, Part I, pp. 29, 126, 132, &c. 
„ Th. Oldham : Additional remarks on the geological relations, etc. Mem. Geol. Surv. Ill, p. 197. 
Quart. Journ. Geolog. Soc., 1875: On the age and correlation of the plant-bearing series of India, etc, 
Sternberg, II, tab. XXXIII, f. 5—10, 
