Authors: Heidemarie Halbritter, Silvia Ulrich, Friðgeir Grímsson, Martina Weber, Reinhard Zetter, Michael Hesse, Ralf Buchner, Matthias Svojtka, Andrea Frosch-Radivo
This book provides a fully illustrated compendium of key terms and basic principles in the field of palynology, making it an indispensable tool for all palynologists. It is a revised and extended edition of “Pollen Terminology. An Illustrated Handbook,” released in 2009. This second edition offers additional insights into new and stunning aspects of palynology. Accordingly, the general chapters have been critically revised, expanded andrestructured. The chapter “Misinterpretations in Palynology” has been extended to include new research data and additional ambiguous terms, e.g., polyads vs. massulae. The chapter “Methods in Palynology” has been extensively enhanced with illustrated protocols showing most methods and techniques used to study recent and fossil pollen with LM, SEM and TEM. Moreover, additional information on describing and publishing pollen data is provided in the chapter “How to Describe and Illustrate Pollen Grains.” Various other parts of the general chapters have been updated and/or extended with more comprehensive textual passages and new illustrations. The chapter “Illustrated Pollen Terms” now includes new and more appropriate examples of each term, including additional LM micrographs. Where necessary, the entries on pollen terms have been improved with new definitions, illustrations and micrographs. Also, new terms have been added, e.g. “suprasculpture” and the prefix “nano-“ for ornamental features. In turn, the chapter “Illustrated Pollen Terms” is the main part of the book and comprises more than 300 widely used terms illustrated with over 1,000 high-quality images. It provides a detailed survey of the manifold ornamentations and structures of pollen, and offers revealing insights into their stunning beauty.