An update of monocot macrofossil data from N ew Z ealand and A ustralia

The macrofossil record of monocotyledons for N ew Z ealand and A ustralia is updated on the basis of recent finds. In particular, reports for mummified leaf fossils with good cuticular preservation reveal significant fossil age or range extensions for a number of families in several different orders, including R ipogonaceae in the E ocene of Tasmania and N ew Z ealand (and S outh A merica), and calamoid and other A recaceae from the E ocene of southern N ew Z ealand. There are also earliest macrofossil records for several families or subfamilies, including A lstroemeriaceae: L uzuriagoideae ( L uzuriaga ), A recaceae, A sparagaceae: L omandroideae ( C ordyline ), A steliaceae ( A stelia ), C ymodoceaceae (aff. R uppia ), C yperaceae, R estionaceae, O rchidaceae: E pidendroideae ( D endrobium and E arina ), A sphodelaceae (previously X anthorrhoeaceae): H emerocallidoideae ( D ianella / P hormium ) and X eronemataceae ( X eronema ) from the M iocene of N ew Z ealand. In addition, an E nsete ‐like seed associated with P akawaua ( M usaceae) and a leaf fragment of a second M usaceae‐like species of M iocene age are presented. The biogeographical and palaeoecological implications of these records, especially for tropical or subtropical taxa occurring at mid to high southern latitudes, is discussed. In particular, the role and ecology of the relatively high‐diversity monocot fossils in the sclerophyllous swamp forest at N ewvale M ine in S outhland and the lake‐edge rainforest at F oulden M aar are explored. © 2015 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2015, 178 , 394–420.