The Jurassic floras of Europe show considerable diversity. To examine the extent of
this diversity and its possible causes we used multivariate statistical methods (cluster
analysis, PCA, NMDS) to compare all significant Jurassic floras in Europe. Data were
based on 770 taxa from 46 fossiliferous occurrences (25 units) from France, Germany,
Greenland, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Poland, Romania, Scotland, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland,
and the United Kingdom. Statistical analyses were applied at species level and genus
level, and also performed for the major plant groups. The genus cladograms show affinities
between different localities based on environmental factors, while the cladograms
based on species affinities indicate only taxonomical correlations. The study shows
that locality age does not seem to be of paramount importance for floral composition.
