Modern pollen rain and vegetation on the edwards plateau, texas
Academic Article
Overview
Identity
Additional Document Info
Other
View All
Overview
abstract
Modern pollen samples were collected from seven major woody plant communities across the Edwards Plateau, Texas. Arboreal pollen averaged 70% of the total pollen, and Quercus, Juniperus and Pinus were dominant arboreal types. Pinus and Quercus were overrepresented in the modern pollen spectra in comparison to their abundance in the vegetation, while Juniperus pollen was underrepresented. Predominant non-arboreal pollen types were Gramineae, Chenopodiaceae-Amaranthaceae and Compositae. Arboreal and non-arboreal pollen were significantly correlated to vegetation canopy cover. Quercus was the only arboreal genus that showed a significant relationship between canopy cover and pollen. Results from this study were compared to modern pollen data from the Post Oak Savanna and western Edwards Plateau. No samples from any region equalled the abundance of Quercus found in this study. Two modern pollen samples showed strong similarities to several fossil pollen records from the western Edwards Plateau. Data from this study supported the hypothesis that Pinus was more abundant in the vegetation at least 8000 years BP which indicates a more mesic environment at that time. 1980 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
