It was well documented that a number of plant species exhibit pollen polymorphism especially in tropical countries. The extend of such polymorphism is not yet investigated in various environmental conditions. Such trend when fully investigated will definitely lead to pollen misidentification.
Gamal:
I am not in this area of research but there's quite a bit of research available in RG on your question that can be useful to you: https://www.researchgate.net/search.Search.html?type=publication&query=pollen%20polymorphism%20will%20lead%20to%20irreliability%20of%20pollen%20identification&tabViewId=58946d07615e272d3a636c0c&previous=researcher
Best regards,
Debra
Gamal exactly I could not follow your point of view. Probably plant species may exhibit pollen polymorphism, no doubt. Is there any problem if they show polymorphism! They show variety of pollen grains no doubt. I believe plants are identified at species level basing on their morphology etc. etc. I come across various/several articles reg. pollen polymorphism in the same species.
Check the following if useful
A Comparative Study of Approaches to Automatic Pollen Identification
(http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.2.9413&rep=rep1&type=pdf)
Automated Pollen Image Classification
(http://trace.tennessee.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2178&context=utk_gradthes)
The Evolution and Function of Stylar Polymorphisms in Flowering Plants
(http://labs.eeb.utoronto.ca/barrett/pdf/SCHB_172.pdf)
Perhaps you found a population with hibrid origin, the polymorphism in pollen in plants , as I studied, show that the plants of these species are of hybrid origin. Please, read this bibliography:
Mollard, F. P. O., P. S. Hoc & R. A. Palacios. Prosopis abbreviata (Mimosaceae) y su presunto origen híbrido. Bol. Soc. Argent. Bot./ Sociedad Argentina de Botánica. ISSN: 0373-520X. 2000. 35(3-4): 305-313.
Mollard, F., P. S. Hoc & R. A. Palacios. Prosopis abbreviata Bentham, evidencias palinológicas sobre su presunto origen híbrido. Latin American Journal of Natural Resources . ISSN: 0327-9375. 2000. 9: 1 - 6.
O, perhaps you discpvered a populatios of a species with floral heteromorphism:
You have to read De Nettancourt, D. 1977. Incompatibility in Angiosperms. Springer- Verlag. Berlín.
Richards, A. J. 1986. Plant breeding systems. George Allen and Unwin. London.
Good luck! Patricia
Pollen polymorphism may be connected either to heterostyly (two or three flower types with different levels/shapes of styles and stamens), or to flowers adapted to different pollination vectors (including wind). In any case, recognition and identification of two or three different pollen morphs of a species is done similarly to one morph identification.
Dear Gamal,
The palm Elaeis guinensis was long identified to be polymorphic producing monocolpate, tricolpate and syncolpate pollen types. For actuopalynologists working with recent pollen, there may be a problem telling which of the pollen producers each may have come from. However, for the palaeopalynologists or stratigraphic palynologists who identify species on morphology rather than breeding, there may be no problem for each morph is a species standing on its own.
When the need arises as to the vegetation the morphs come from, all the options are considered and the total fossil assemblage in the sediment is usually assessed instead of an individual morph. This keeps the geologist out of danger. So the above question which may be a problem for the botanist may not be such for the geologist. The age will still read the same if they are not reworked.
Polymorphism will not lead to lack of reliability in pollen identification because one would obviously consider all the alternative producers.
All the best.
Obianuju P. Umeji
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