
Dinoflagellate Protoperidinium divergens and resting on it the coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi; recent specimens from a plankton sample from the Croatian Coast. Imaged by Luka Šupraha of Uppsala University, Sweden. ®©
Chair: Ingrid Romero (Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, USA)
Secretary: Amalia Spina (University of Perugia, Italy)
Palynology is the study of all organic-walled palynomorphs that can be found in sedimentary archives, from acritarchs to dinoflagellate cysts, pollen, spores and non-pollen palynomorphs (including fungal spores, algae, etc.).
Palynology, from the Greek Paluno (sprinkle) and logy (study), aims at studying microscopic particles produced by plants such as pollen, spores as well as freshwater and marine algal cysts, and other types of palynomorphs such as acritarchs, chitinozoans and scolecodonts, that can be found in the air, water or varied sediment deposits and for a variety of time scales. A wide range of subjects encompasses palynological studies, such as melissopalynology (study of honey), forensic palynology, pollen allergy, biostratigraphy, taxonomy and evolutionary studies, environmental studies including archaeology, palaeoecology and limnology, to cite a few.
Recent Palynology Posts
- ISSS Meeting September 10-13 2025, Seville SpainAdd to your calendar here! The official 2025 meeting of the International Subcommission on Silurian Stratigraphy will take place in Spain, as agreed by the delegates at the last annual meeting held in Sofia, Bulgaria, in September 2024. This year marks the 27th anniversary of the Silurian Field Meeting that took… Read more: ISSS Meeting September 10-13 2025, Seville Spain
- 12th International Cretaceous Symposium, 31 August – 5th September 2025Add to your calendar here. Welcome to the 12th International Cretaceous Symposium, which will take place from 31 August to 5 September 2025 in Hannover, Germany. This prestigious event, jointly organized by Leibniz Universität Hannover (LUH) and the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), will provide a unique platform for leading scientists and professionals to… Read more: 12th International Cretaceous Symposium, 31 August – 5th September 2025
- Update: Palynology TalksPalynology Talks will beging on September 22 2025! More information to follow.
- Microfossil Image Competition 2025 for 2026 TMS Calendar – EntrySince 2014, TMS has held a micropalaeontology-themed image competition, where the winning 12 images form our TMS calendar every year. This year’s competition is now open so please submit your images here! To submit an image, please fill in the form above by the 2nd of July 2025. Late entries will… Read more: Microfossil Image Competition 2025 for 2026 TMS Calendar – Entry
- The Micropalaeontological Society Annual Conference – Pisa, ItalyA Natural Kaleidoscope: understanding the Earth system through microfossils We are delighted to announce that the Annual Conference of The Micropalaeontological Society (TMS) will be held in Pisa, Italy, from 5 to 8 November 2025, hosted by the University of Pisa. The conference will feature: The TMS Annual Conference will be held in Pisa,… Read more: The Micropalaeontological Society Annual Conference – Pisa, Italy