Dense‐media separation as a more efficient pollen extraction method for use with organic sediment/deposit samples: comparison with the conventional method

Abstract

Dense‐media separation, frequently adopted as a standard pollen extraction method for use with minerogenic sediment samples, was adapted for use with organic‐rich sediment and peat samples. A total of 15 organic‐rich sediment samples, obtained from sites in Corsica and the Southern European Alps, was treated using both dense‐media separation and the conventional preparation method in order to compare the relative efficiencies of the two methods. The dense‐media separation method consistently achieved a remarkably higher purity of extracted pollen grains. This was especially true for the Corsican peat samples, the dense‐media separations being quite pure, whereas the classical method produced samples that were so severely polluted with organic fragments that it was impossible to carry out a satisfactory pollen analysis. The percentage values of each taxon were generally similar using both methods, showing that the two methods are compatible for pollen analytical studies. Total pollen concentrations were generally higher with the dense‐media separation method (especially for gyttja samples). In conclusion, dense‐media separation is an efficient method for pollen extraction from organic as well as from minerogenic sediments and deposits.