Exceptional new record of Cretaceous Hauterivian Angiospermid Pollen from Southern England

Abstract. Routine SEM examination of a previously neglected part of the Wealden succession in the borehole at Kingsclere, Southern England, has revealed a very well preserved set of specimens, in a single sample (KCE 777), of a type of early pollen grain only known hitherto from isolated grains. This tectate-columellate monosulcate pollen with sharply segmented muri and sturdy columellae is the earliest known with generally accepted angiospermid characters, and appears to be of Cretaceous Hauterivian age. The nature of the simple tectate pattern over the aperture suggests a style of pollen development to bear in mind when searching for even earlier pollen of this group.