Discriminating fossil evergreen and deciduous Quercus pollen: a case study from the Miocene of eastern China
- Author(s)
- Yu-Sheng Liu, Reinhard Zetter, David-Kay Ferguson, Barbara A.R. Mohr
- Abstract
In palaeopalynology oaks are rarely identified beyond the generic level. In order to recognize fossil evergreen and deciduous oak pollen, we compiled distinguishing criteria from the literature, most under the SEM, on the living oaks. One of the most significant criteria is the nature of the sculpturing under the SEM. Evergreen oak pollen exhibit at least four kinds of sculpturing, viz. rod-like elements, uniformly fine granules, scabrate-verrucate, and rugulate micromorphology. The first two types of sculpturing are mostly limitd to the evergreen oaks and can be used to identify fossil evergreen oak pollen, while the last two types can also be seen in many deciduous oaks. On the other hand, deciduous oak pollen grains have relatively uniform sculpturing, with only two types encountered: scabrate-verrucate and rugulate sculpturing. This sculpturing is mainly present in deciduous oaks, despite its occurence in some evergreen oaks. An absolute discrimination between evergreen and deciduous oak pollen ist thus impossible and would require additional evidence in the form of macrofossils. The diagnostic criteria are applied to a Miocene pollen assemblag from Zhejiang Province, eastern China and demonstrate the high diversity of fossil oaks in the vegetation. The fossil pollen includes three morphotaxa of deciduous origin, two morphotaxa of evergreen habit, and three oaks whose habit is uncertain.
- Organisation(s)
- Department of Palaeontology
- External organisation(s)
- East Tennessee State University, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
- Journal
- Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology
- Volume
- 145
- Pages
- 289-303
- No. of pages
- 15
- ISSN
- 0034-6667
- Publication date
- 2007
- Peer reviewed
- Yes
- Austrian Fields of Science 2012
- 1060 Biology, 1051 Geology, Mineralogy
- Portal url
- https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/963c5d7c-92f6-42de-ad1d-e2c4fe6c67a1