Some Palynological Considerations in the Environmental History

Environmental history and Quaternary botany have long been interconnected by palynological methods. In this context, pollen morphology and some aspects of pollen systematics can inform on adaptations to different environmental conditions in short- and long-term approaches. In this chapter, we show that some topics such as pollen aperture evolution, exine ultrastructure, and pollen wall development are critical for past environments. In addition, the inclusion of some niche construction ideas improves palaeoecological reconstructions for cross-scale interactions such as historical legacies, climate change, and microenvironmental conditions. For these reasons, we provide this framework and promising future lines of research in ecology and archaeology. Finally, the environmental history represents a mosaic of methods in pollen morphology and local and regional reconstructions for past societies.