ISSN 0031-0301, Paleontological Journal, 2011, Vol. 45, No. 3, pp. 335–346. © Pleiades Publishing, Ltd., 2011. Original Russian Text © Tao Yang, S.V. Naugolnykh, Ge Sun, 2011, published in Paleontologicheskii Zhurnal, 2011, No. 3, pp. 95–105. 335 INTRODUCTION The significance of extinct equisetophytes (order Equisetales and related taxa) for paleoecological and paleophytogeographic reconstructions has repeatedly been discussed (McIver and Basinger, 1989; Watson and Batten, 1990; Naugolnykh, 2002; Tverdokhlebov, 2004; Escapa and Cuneo, 2005; Cuneo and Escapa, 2006; etc.). The overwhelming majority of extant and extinct equisetophytes, exception for very rare cases, prefer humid riparian ecotopes. Many equisetophytes formed monospecific hydro- and hygrophilous phyto- coenoses in these ecotopes. Therefore, as hypautoch- thonous fossil equisetophytes forming monospecific or monodominant oryctocoenoses are recorded, it is highly probable that they correspond to hydro- and hygrophilous riparian communities; in particular, this is true of Late Paleozoic localities (for more detail, see Naugolnykh, 2007; Naugolnykh and Lunev, 2009). Equisetophytes are also good markers of the major paleophytogeographic realms and provinces of the Late Paleozoic and Early Mesozoic. Thus, the follow- ing taxa are paleophytogeographic markers of the Car- boniferous and Permian of Angaraland: Equisetin- ostachys Rasskazova, Tchernovia (=Tschernovia) Zalessky, Paracalamitina Zalessky emend. Naugol- nykh, Koretrophyllites Radczenko, Sorocaulis Radc- zenko, Annulina Neuburg; the markers of the Early Triassic of Angaraland are Neokoretrophyllites Radc- zenko and Paraschizoneura Radczenko (the authors believe that Gondwanan members of this genus repre- sent a parallel lineage and should be transferred to a different genus); the markers of the Permian of Gond- wana are Austroannularia Rigby, Raniganjia Rigby, Giridia Pant, Nautiyal et Misra, Cruciaetheca Cuneo et Escapa, and Peltotheca Escapa et Cuneo (Pant and Nautiyal, 1967; Pant et al., 1981; Rigby, 1989); and the markers of the Triassic of Gondwana are Nododendron Artabe et Zamuner, Townroviamites Holmes, Spaciin- odum Osborn et Taylor, Zonulamites Holmes, Nym- bolaria Holmes, and Nymbotheca Holmes (Osborn and Taylor, 1989; Artabe and Zamuner, 1991; Osborn et al., 2000; Holmes, 2000, 2001). Remains of equise- tophytes described from the Permian of South Amer- ica as Tschernovia (?) velizensis Duran et Hunicken (Duran et al., 1997) and Burdekinia multiseptata Holmes from the Upper Carboniferous of Australia (Holmes, 1996), which was determined as a plant of uncertain taxonomic position, are very similar to the genus Peltotheca (Escapa and Cuneo, 2005). The Cathaysian Paleophytogeographic Realm is charac- terized by the presence of the genus Lobatannularia Halle (Halle, 1927), which is occasionally recorded in some other regions of the Peritethys, for example, in Turkey (Hazro Flora: Wagner, 1962; Archangelsky and Wagner, 1983), Saudi Arabia (Unayzah Flora: Hill et al., 1985; etc.), and western Iraq (Ga’ara Flora: Ctyroky, 1973). The above examples, which are far from exhausting the list of paleophytogeographically important equisetophytes, distinctly show the impor- tance of these plants not only for paleoecological reconstruction but also for paleobotanical systematics, including taxa of relatively low hierarchical ranks. A New Representative of Neocalamites Halle from the Upper Permian of Northeastern China (Jiefangcun Formation) Tao Yang a , S. V. Naugolnykh b , and Ge Sun a a Jilin University, Changchun, 130026 People’s Republic of China e-mail: sunge@jlu.edu.cn b Geological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pyzhevskii per. 7, Moscow, 119017 Russia e-mail: naugolnykh@rambler.ru Received January 20, 2010 Abstract—A new species, Neocalamites hunchunensis sp. nov. from the Upper Permian Jiefangcun Formation of northeastern China is described. The Jiefangcun Upper Permian Flora is briefly characterized. Its taxo- nomic composition, age, and significance for paleophytogeographical reconstructions are discussed. The Late Permian phase in equisetophyte evolution is considered. Keywords: Neocalamites, equisetophyte, Permian, China, taxonomy, evolution. DOI: 10.1134/S0031030111030130