Environmental implications of pollen spectra in bat droppings from southeastern Spain and potential for palaeoenvironmental reconstructions

Pollen was analysed from bat guano from nine caves in southeastern Spain and surface soils in their immediate surroundings. We compare the pollen spectra of 34 modern dung samples from the nine caves with one modern surface pollen sample from each cave. The contents suggest reasonable pollen diversity and richness, including anemophilous and zoophilous pollen types. Since the latter is usually under-represented in atmospheric pollen, the guano spectra therefore appear to reflect the vegetation more effectively than normal surface soil samples. Despite health hazards such as histoplasmosis, the difficulties of obtaining bat guano in deep caves and possible interpretational concerns relating to behaviour and feeding habits of different bat species, this material can be very useful in palaeoecological research provided that the dung was fossilized under favourable environmental conditions that allowed the preservation of pollen.