Showing papers in "Palynology in 2014"
TL;DR: A detailed pollen record for the time interval of ∼2500-500 BCE, which covers the time period of the Intermediate Bronze Age (Early Bronze Age IV) into the Iron Ages in the Levant, is presented in this paper.
Abstract: A detailed pollen record for the time interval of ∼2500–500 BCE, which covers the time period of the Intermediate Bronze Age (Early Bronze Age IV) into the Iron Ages in the Levant, is presented. The study was conducted in the Ze’elim Gully, which drains the southern Judean Highlands into the Dead Sea. During the Bronze and Iron Ages, the Judean Highlands exhibited dramatic settlement fluctuations. To better understand these oscillations, high-resolution fossil pollen data were combined with a recent pollen data set, lithological features, radiocarbon dating and palaeohydrological information derived from the Dead Sea levels. Due to the occurrence of hiatuses in this fluvial environment, we used a composite profile which was based on two palynological-sedimentological profiles. This integrated information enabled us to reconstruct in great detail for the first time the environmental conditions in relation to the picture derived from archaeological field-work in the Judean Highlands. Evidence for drier clim...
77 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a palynological analysis has been conducted on the Cretaceous sediments of the Abu Tunis 1x borehole, in the northern Western Desert, Egypt.
Abstract: A palynological analysis has been conducted on the Cretaceous sediments of the Abu Tunis 1x borehole, in the northern Western Desert, Egypt. The palynomorphs recovered have been analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively, and permit a refinement of the original stratigraphy with the identification of four time-rock units. These have been divided into four informal sporomorph units and one dinoflagellate cyst palynozone. These biozones are, from oldest to youngest: the Afropollis jardinus-Tricolporopollenites-Elaterosporites klaszii Assemblage Zone (early–mid Albian), the Elaterosporites verrucatus-Sofrepites legouxae-Cretacaeiporites Assemblage Zone (late Albian–early Cenomanian), the Sofrepites legouxae Partial Range Zone (early–?mid Cenomanian), the Proteacidites cf. africaensis Total Range Zone (mid–late Cenomanian) and the Canningia senonica Total Range Zone (early? Santonian). A barren interzone has been identified immediately below the youngest palynozone, and this may be related to the unfavourable lithology (i.e., limestone and dolostone). The absolute abundances of spores and pollen represent the first quantitative description of an Egyptian Albian–Cenomanian palynofloral, a flora that is characteristic of the Albian–Cenomanian Elaterate Phytogeographical Province. The early Santonian palynoflora is exclusively marine phytoplankton; terrestrial palynomorphs representative of the Senonian Palmae Province are completely absent. The quantitative and semi-quantitative distributions of Afropollis jardinus are compared with similar semi-quantitative distributions of this species from other wells in the northern Western Desert of Egypt, and this permitted the identification of a mid Albian–early Cenomanian Afropollis jardinus ‘acme’ as an important local biostratigraphical event in the mid Cretaceous.
35 citations
TL;DR: The present communication reviews the pattern of modern pollen-rain studies carried out in southwestern Madhya Pradesh, India and revealed that Tectona grandis (teak) is recorded mostly in low frequencies, attributable to its low pollen dispersal efficiency as well as poor pollen preservation in the sediments.
Abstract: The present communication reviews the pattern of modern pollen-rain studies carried out in southwestern Madhya Pradesh, India. The study largely revealed that Tectona grandis (teak), despite being an enormous pollen producer (7500 average number of absolute pollen/flower) and the dominant forest constituent (80 to 95% of the total forest constituents), is recorded mostly in low frequencies, attributable to its low pollen dispersal efficiency as well as poor pollen preservation in the sediments. However, Madhuca indica (Mahua) and other dominant members of Sapotaceae (cf. Manilkara hexandra and Mimusops elangi) have always shown their typical behaviour in the pollen spectra and are represented in high frequencies, which are assigned to their local abundance around the provenance of the samples, coupled with high dispersal efficiency as well as good pollen preservation in the sediments. Meanwhile, the other usual and characteristic associates of teak (Tectona grandis) in the tropical deciduous forests, desp...
32 citations
TL;DR: It can be concluded that the families Arecaceae and Fabaceae are the major pollen sources for production of bee pollen in the state of Sergipe, followed by Asteraceae, Anacardiaceae, Poaceae and Rubiaceae.
Abstract: In Brazil, the production of bee pollen loads began modestly in the late 1980s, stimulated by consumption of natural products. Demand and consumption have increased, and there has been no increase in scientific studies. This work aims to expand scientific knowledge by identifying the plants used by Apis mellifera L. as sources of pollen loads in the State of Sergipe, Brazil. Twelve samples were collected from January to December 2011, in the municipalities of Barra dos Coqueiros, Brejo Grande, Estância and Pacatuba, all located in the eastern region of Sergipe. For the study of the pollen grains, the bee pollen underwent the usual laboratory processing techniques (acetolysis). For the analysis 500 grains were counted from each sample and, for botanical identification, the specialised literature and the pollen library were used. A total of 46 pollen types, distributed in 19 families, were found. Fabaceae was the family displaying the greatest diversity of pollen types (19), and the genus Mimosa L. was the ...
32 citations
TL;DR: By examining the pollen in honey, it can determined which habitats honeybees visit, which plants honeybees use as food, if they visit row crops and orchards and their role in pollination.
Abstract: Since the beginning of honey production, certain honey types have been favored because they taste better, are better for cooking or do not rapidly crystallize. Thus, they are preferred over others, are in high demand and are sold at higher prices. The pollen of 37 honey samples from East Texas was examined. Pollen was recovered from the honey by using an alcohol-dilution method. Overall, 431 taxa identified into 61 families, 104 genera and 85 species were found in the samples. The number of taxa per sample varied from 17–52. Half of the samples contained 31–40 taxa, indicating a high diversity in botanical origin. Three taxa were found in >50% of the samples and are the most important: Berchemia scandens, Salix nigra and Toxicodendron radicans. Berchemia scandens was found in 89% of the samples and was a predominant type in three samples and an important secondary type in 14. Both Salix nigra and Toxicodendron radicans pollen occurred in 83% of the samples and neither occurred as a predominant or secondar...
28 citations
TL;DR: Analysis of the honey produced in hives as well as the stored pollen loads help to evaluate the sources of nectar and pollen used by honey bees and their behavioural pattern in the selection of preferences for certain plants as food.
Abstract: Gathering information on the bee foraging plants in a given area is of primary importance in the development of any apiculture industry. Analysis of the honey produced in hives as well as the stored pollen loads help to evaluate the sources of nectar and pollen used by honey bees and their behavioural pattern in the selection of preferences for certain plants as food. Our previous melissopalynology study focused on the analysis of the Omani honey from hives in 14 locations of Muscat and the Al Batinah regions. Our current study examines the pollen pellets collected from those same areas. A total of 249 pollen pellets from 22 honeycombs that were collected by Apis florea and Apis mellifera honeybees were processed and the pollen types were identified using light and scanning electron microscopy. Each pollen load was designated as a unifloral, bifloral or multifloral type. Each plant taxon identified was categorized as being utilized by honeybees for pollen only, nectar only or for both pollen and nectar. A...
25 citations
TL;DR: Palynological assemblages from the Tehuacan Formation (TF), geochronologically dated as Middle Miocene (15.6 ± 0.4 Ma), provide evidence of a highly diverse flora that, at the generic level, is similar to the extant flora.
Abstract: Palynological assemblages from the Tehuacan Formation (TF), geochronologically dated as Middle Miocene (15.6 ± 0.4 Ma), provide evidence of a highly diverse flora that, at the generic level, is similar to the extant flora in the Tehuacan Valley. We propose that, during Miocene times, plant communities may have been formed of similar botanical elements to those seen today in the region, with some taxa adapted to semiarid conditions. While major temperate floristic elements of Pinus, Quercus, Juniperus, cloud forest and mexical vegetation can be recognized, components of tropical deciduous forests, such as Burseraceae, Leguminosae and Cactaceae, are also present, indicating semiarid conditions. Semiarid local conditions are also inferred from the geological record, consisting of lacustrine and alluvial fan deposits, which contain abundant evaporites beds. This lithology was formed under high evaporation and moderate precipitation conditions, as usually occurs in small basins fed by a seasonal input of water...
23 citations
TL;DR: In this article, modern surface pollen spectra and vegetation in an Amazon location, Carajas, Brazil, where open and woody types of vegetation, swamps and lakes develop under rock outcrops were analysed with ecological ordination.
Abstract: Pollen rain studies in Amazonia are scarce but of utmost importance to support interpretations of pollen records. We have investigated modern surface pollen spectra and vegetation in an Amazon location, Carajas, Brazil, where open and woody types of vegetation, swamps and lakes develop under rock outcrops. Both plant inventories of different savanna types along with bryophytic surface samples were analysed with ecological ordination. The results point to taxa that can be used in the differentiation of dry and flooded systems within the savannas studied. Dry savannas, either open or wooded, are indicated by the herbs Cuphea, Asteraceae, Borreria, Caryophyllaceae and Polygonaceae, and by woody taxa such as Myrtaceae, Byrsonima, Sapotaceae, Neea and Rubiaceae. Flooded savannas (swamps) and lakes are indicated by herbs like Sagittaria, Montrichardia, Nymphaea, Cyperaceae and Mimosa and palms. Poaceae was found to have a bipolar signature, and using it as an indicator should be done with caution.
16 citations
TL;DR: A new organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst species, Spiniferites multisphaerus sp. nov, was described from Late Quaternary sediments of Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California (Mexico).
Abstract: A new organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst species, Spiniferites multisphaerus sp. nov., is described from Late Quaternary sediments of Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California (Mexico). This species is characterized by a pronounced apical protuberance and bubble-like elements that comprise the central body wall, sutural septae and processes. The central body wall is ∼1.0–2.1 µm thick and appears pseudoreticulate in transmitted light microscopy. Processes are generally stubby and have blunt or furcated tips. Tabulation is expressed by low to moderate sutural septae, and is typical of the genus. Spiniferites multisphaerus sp. nov. has been found in low abundances throughout the Late Quaternary in Guaymas Basin with maximum abundances of 6% or 1670 cysts g-1, and is rare in the Holocene, including modern sediments.
15 citations
TL;DR: A palynological investigation of 15 ditch cutting samples from Borehole 8, located off the Angolan coast, westcentral Africa, revealed Late Oligocene (Chattian) to latest Middle to earliest Early Miocene (Serravallian/earliest Tortonian?) marine dinoflagellate cysts, freshwater colonial algae and terrestrial palynomorphs as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: A palynological investigation of 15 ditch cutting samples from Borehole 8, located off the Angolan coast, westcentral Africa, revealed Late Oligocene (Chattian) to latest Middle to earliest Early Miocene (Serravallian/earliest Tortonian?) marine dinoflagellate cysts, freshwater colonial algae and terrestrial palynomorphs. Various early Miocene pollen characterising the Verrutricolporites rotundiporus Zone of Legoux (1978) confirm the location of the Oligocene—Miocene boundary in relation to a new short-ranging early Miocene dinoflagellate cyst taxon Cristadinium headii sp. nov. The Oligocene to Miocene dinoflagellate cyst assemblages reflect three periods, A–C, with high palaeoproductivity, corresponding to periods in the latest Oligocene (late Chattian), Early Miocene (late Aquitanian—early Burdigalian?) and the base of the Middle Miocene (Langhian). Early to middle Miocene acme intervals of Cleistosphaeridium placacanthum and Cribroperidinium tenuitabulatum are considered to reflect two regional oceanographic events due to intense upwelling along the West African coast. A distinct Early Miocene episode of brackish-water outflow from the nearby Angolan mainland is also reflected by the palynological assemblages, perhaps linked to the global Mi-1 event. Changes in relative abundance of grass pollen indicate a gradual change towards a drier and perhaps also warmer Burdigalian—Langhian climate during which the Angolan savanna developed, followed by cooler and perhaps more humid conditions following the Miocene Climatic Optimum.
15 citations
TL;DR: The quantitative analyis showed that nectar is the main honey source in the samples studied, and the presence of 35 taxa belonging to 17 families was showed, including Euphorbia officinarum subsp.
Abstract: Pollen was analysed in 30 unifloral Euphorbia honey samples from the Ifni Massif Region (Anti Atlas, Morocco). The honey samples were directly provided by beekeepers. The quantitative analyis showed that nectar is the main honey source in the samples studied. The qualitative analysis of the samples showed the presence of 35 taxa belonging to 17 families. The Moroccan Euphorbia honeys of the studied region are characterized by their low—medium number of pollen grains (NGP; mean = 5700), 76% of the honeys belong to Class I and II of Maurizio, and by their low honeydew indicator (HDE/NGPn 90% of the samples, followed by Bellis sp., Capsella f. and Reseda sp. (85%). However, for the E. regis-jubae honeys, the most characteristic accompanying species are Crepis f., present in 100% of the samples.
TL;DR: The results of this study show that FCR is the most reliable and accurate for assessing viability and longevity in C. sativa.
Abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the pollen viability and longevity of Cannabis sativa, which is a significant economic crop. Viability and longevity are evaluated using different staining techniques: Alexander’s, Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride (TCT) and Fluorochromatic Reaction (FCR). The results of this study show that FCR is the most reliable and accurate for assessing viability and longevity in C. sativa. Viability was measured over days and across 2010. Viability was greatest between 0 – 3 days of anther dehiscence and during April, whilst December had the lowest pollen viability. For Cannabis sativa the first 3 days after anthesis are the most important for fertilization, following the 3rd day there is a rapid decline in viability.
TL;DR: The results stress the need for further studies on the pollen/nectar contribution to honey by the Croton species in this semi-arid region and demonstrate the importance of melissopalynology in investigating the botanical origin of honeys.
Abstract: Samples of honey, called marmeleiro honey by its producers, from the state of Piaui, Brazil, were analysed to study their pollen contents. Samples were dissolved in water, alcohol was added to the solution and the samples were subjected to acetolysis. The absolute concentration of pollen grains in the samples was established using an exotic marker. Multivariate cluster analysis was performed to determine the similarity amongst samples. A total of 158 pollen types were identified from 48 families and 103 genera of plants. The most prevalent families in the pollen spectra were Leguminosae, Myrtaceae, Rubiaceae and Euphorbiaceae. The pollen types Mimosa caesalpiniifolia and Pityrocarpa moniliformis were predominant in 12 samples. Other notable pollen types were Borreria verticillata, Combretum and Mitracarpus salzmannianus. Similarity analysis did not distinguish samples produced on different vegetation types or in the Piaui microregions. Only three samples were considered monofloral. In contrast to beekeepe...
TL;DR: In this article, the lower Pliocene Serripes Zone of the Tjornes beds in northern Iceland has been used for the discovery of new acritarch species, including Halodinium eirikssonii n. sp.
Abstract: Biostratigraphical investigations of Miocene deposits from the southern North Sea Basin, the Oligocene and Miocene of the Bahamas, and the lower Pliocene of northern Iceland revealed the presence of new acritarch species. Halodinium eirikssonii n. sp. is recovered from the lower Pliocene Serripes Zone of the Tjornes beds in northern Iceland, where its range is well constrained through magnetostratigraphy and biostratigraphy using dinoflagellate cysts. Leiosphaeridia spongiosa n. sp. is recovered from lower to upper Miocene deposits of the southern North Sea Basin and from upper Oligocene and Miocene deposits of the Bahamas. Palaeostomocystis orbiculata n. sp. appears to be restricted to the middle Miocene of the North Sea Basin.
TL;DR: Pollen analysis revealed a significant overall correspondence between pollen variation amongst species of Podostemum and phylogenetic patterns.
Abstract: The pollen morphology of Podostemum (Podostemaceae) was analysed with the aim of providing detailed descriptions of pollen for all species of the genus. Pollen grains were obtained from anthers of flower buds, acetolysed, and examined using light and scanning electron microscopy. The pollen grains are dyads or monads, small or medium sized, with shape ranging from 14.7 to 32.3, prolate spheroidal, oblate spheroidal, prolate, subprolate, with a circular, subtriangular or triangular amb. Pollen grains are tricolpate, and the colpus membrane conspicuously ornate. The exine is thin, spiculate with mamilloid elements with acute apices. Hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) was used to divide the main pollen taxa into three groups based on pollen morphology. Statistically distinctive taxa were identified using principal components analysis (PCA). Pollen analysis revealed a significant overall correspondence between pollen variation amongst species of Podostemum and phylogenetic patterns.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compared Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic Antarctic specimens with some round brown spiny cysts (RBSCs) recorded from the Holocene of southern Argentina.
Abstract: Small spiny marine palynomorphs have been the focus of recent palynological studies since their high proportions in Antarctic Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic assemblages were noted These palynomorphs were assigned to the dinoflagellate cyst Impletosphaeridium clavus and they were believed to have had an affinity with some modern round brown spiny cysts (RBSCs) Our study aims to analyse there together with potential modern analogues by comparing Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic Antarctic specimens with some RBSCs recorded from the Holocene of southern Argentina We confirm several features in common between these specimens, although differences in processes and the cyst wall are observed The species could have been produced by dinoflagellates similar to those that generate some RBSCs Their abundance in the Late Cretaceous may have occurred in response to short term cooling pulses without development of sea-ice cover Cenozoic records are considered to be reworked, restricting the stratigraphical range of Impl
TL;DR: In this paper, the results of a new sedimentary sequence from the southern Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, which spans the late Last Interglacial marine isotope stage (MIS) 5e to early MIS 5c of the last Glacial was presented.
Abstract: During the late Quaternary, extensive forests covered the slopes of the southern section of the Lebanon Mountains. Investigating the response of these forests to the climate change at the Last Interglacial–Last Glacial transition provides insight into their response to an abrupt and extensive deterioration in climate. Here we present the results of a new sedimentary sequence from the southern Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, which spans the late Last Interglacial marine isotope stage (MIS) 5e to early MIS 5c of the Last Glacial. High-resolution analyses for pollen, carbon isotopes and total organic carbon have been undertaken and reveal dramatic shifts in the vegetation composition during this transition. At the Last Interglacial (MIS 5e) to glacial (MIS 5d) transition an environmental threshold was crossed in response to a significant reduction in precipitation with the development of grassland/steppe dominated by Chenopodiaceae and Artemisia. The arid conditions led to the loss of the temperate deciduous arboreal...
TL;DR: The pollen morphology of Nepenthes khasiana (the pitcher plant) from India, was investigated using both light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy to investigate fine details that may contribute to the taxonomic characterisation of species, as well as to utilise the knowledge of its morphology in order to correlate it with Bornean Nepenthe species.
Abstract: The pollen morphology of Nepenthes khasiana (the pitcher plant) from India, was investigated using both light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. This was to investigate fine details that may contribute to the taxonomic characterisation of species, as well as to utilise the knowledge of its morphology in order to correlate it with Bornean Nepenthes species. The size of the tetrad is the defining feature. The pollen grain is non-aperturate, the sexine is spinuliferous and thicker than the nexine. The study indicates that the species is similar in shape, aperture and ornamentation, and can be discriminated by the size of the tetrad, the length of the spines and the exine thickness. The size of the tetrad (30.7 μm) is closer to two Bornean species such as N. rafflesiana and N. mirabilis (30.5 and 31.0 μm respectively). These observations will be helpful in morphotaxonomy for accurate identification. This will help in finding these taxa from modern and sub-surface soils in order to study the present ...
TL;DR: The extreme learning machine (ELM) exhibited a very high success rate for identifying the pollen types considered here, and has great potential in all areas of palynology for the accurate and rapid accumulation of data.
Abstract: Pollen grains are complex three-dimensional structures, and are identified using specific distinctive morphological characteristics. An efficient automatic system for the accurate and rapid identification of pollen grains would significantly enhance the consistency, objectivity, speed and perhaps accuracy of pollen analysis. This study describes the development and testing of an expert system for the identification of pollen grains based on their respective morphologies. The extreme learning machine (ELM) is a type of artificial neural network, and has been used for automatic pollen identification. To test the equipment and the method, pollen grains from 10 species of Onopordum (a thistle genus) from Turkey were used. In total, 30 different images were acquired for each of the 10 species studied. The images were then used to measure 11 morphological parameters; these were the colpus length, the colpus width, the equatorial axis (E), the polar axis (P), the P/E ratio, the columellae length, the echinae len...
TL;DR: It is observed that translators of Periplocoideae are taxonomically more important structures than pollen tetrads and the position of attachment of caudicles to pollinia is an overlapping character amongst the tribes and sub-tribes and can be utilised only for the taxonomy of genera.
Abstract: The palynological characters of selected species of Periplocoideae and Asclepiadoideae were assessed and a taxonomic key made. We observed that translators of Periplocoideae are taxonomically more important structures than pollen tetrads. Within Periplocoideae, the flatter translators of Periploceae are evolutionarily more primitive than the spatulate translators of Cryptolepideae. The quantitative characters of pollinia are important for the genus- and species-level taxonomy in Asclepiadoideae. Pollinium length/width ratio was studied for the first time and it was observed to be a useful character for the delimitation of the tribes and sub-tribes of Asclepiadoideae. The position of attachment of caudicles to pollinia is an overlapping character amongst the tribes and sub-tribes and can be utilised only for the taxonomy of genera. True sterile margins of pollinia are present only in Ceropegieae and pseudo-sterile margins are rarely present in other tribes. Asclepiadoideae within Apocynaceae, and Ascelpiad...
TL;DR: Nandi and Sinha as mentioned in this paper described two new fungal spore species, Mediaverrunites batii sp. nov. and Mediaverrunnerites pontidiensis sp., from Upper Miocene sediments of the Black Sea.
Abstract: Fossil fungal spores, endemic Paratethyan dinoflagellate cysts, organic-walled algal cysts, spores and pollen are very common in the onshore and offshore Neogene sediments of the Black Sea, Turkey. Amongst these assemblages, the fungal spore form-genus Mediaverrunites Nandi and Sinha 2007, emend. nov., described from Neogene strata from tropical to temperate paleoclimates, commonly occurs in Upper Miocene sediments. The presence of stratigraphically important dinoflagellate cyst and pollen taxa confirms the stratigraphic importance of this genus in the Upper Miocene of the Black Sea. Two new fungal spore species, Mediaverrunites batii sp. nov. and Mediaverrunites pontidiensis sp. nov., are described from Upper Miocene sediments of the Black Sea.
TL;DR: In this paper, it was shown that a form of Nothofagus-gymnosperm temperate rainforest was colonising basaltic soils at Toowoomba duri.
Abstract: The spore-pollen zonation developed for the Gippsland Basin, southeast Australia, is widely used to date Paleogene—Neogene terrestrial sediments elsewhere in Australia. Microfloras preserved in an argon-40 (40Ar)/argon-39 (39Ar) dated 23 Ma claystone on the summit of the Great Dividing Range at Toowoomba in subtropical southeast Queensland indicate the Gippsland zonation, and the parallel schemata developed for the epicontinental Murray Basin in southeastern Australia provide only a general guide to the age of Late Paleogene—Neogene sediments as far north as Queensland. The finding reiterates the need to develop regional spore-pollen palynostratigraphies for Queensland (and northern Australia) centred on Cenozoic microfloras whose geologic age can be independently verified by other dating techniques. The same microfloras, however, are reliable evidence of past vegetation and climates, in this instance that a form of Nothofagus-gymnosperm temperate rainforest was colonising basaltic soils at Toowoomba duri...
TL;DR: In this article, two species of dinoflagellate cyst are described from the Early Cretaceous of northern Alberta, Canada: Lopsidinium subrisum and paxense.
Abstract: Two species of a distinctive new genus of dinoflagellate cyst are described from the Early Cretaceous of northern Alberta, Canada. The genotype, Lopsidinium subrisum, comes from the Lower Albian Clearwater Formation, in wells drilled to extract the enormous heavy oil and bitumen resources of the Athabasca and Cold Lake Oil Sands areas, northeastern Alberta. The second species, Lopsidinium paxense, occurs in the Middle Albian, upper Loon River Formation exposed in the banks of the Peace River, northwestern Alberta. Lopsidinium subrisum occurs in assemblages of dinoflagellate cysts associated with brackish water and it is likely that L. paxense is derived from similar environments.