Maastrichtian dicotyledons of the Rusca Montană and Haţeg basins, South Carpathians, Romania

•Maastrichtian dicotyledons from the Haţeg and Rusca Montană basins are revised.•Identified dicotyledon taxa are less diverse than previously considered.•In this area, dicotyledons were associated with monocotyledons and ferns.•The Maastrichtian floral assemblage was dominated by monocotyledons.

The Haţeg and Rusca Montană basins (South Carpathians, Romania) yield a rich Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) compressive megafloral assemblage represented by ferns, conifers, monocotyledons and dicotyledons. This paper focuses on the dicotyledons of these basins, based on recently collected material as well as on historical collections of the University of Bucharest, including the Dincă and Răileanu collections, and of the Babeş-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca, with the Petrescu and Duşa collection. The dicotyledonate association is represented by Araliaephyllum sp., Credneria denticulata, Ettingshausenia onomasta, Ettingshausenia sp., and five other dicotyledon types, a taxonomically much less diverse assemblage than previously published. Differences with regard to the previous taxa lists of the Haţeg and Rusca Montană basins are due to the reinterpretation of the fossil material in the light of recent advances in the field, especially when considering a higher variation of the leaf material, its preservation and its taphonomy.