Our Microbotanical Services
Palynology
Reveals past vegetation, land use, and environmental conditions at sites of human occupation.
Microcharcoal
Microcharcoal fragments preserved in sediments provide a record of past fire activity and vegetation burning events.
Diatoms
Abundant in almost all aquatic environments and can be found in moist soils and on damp surfaces.
Phytoliths
Microscopic silica bodies formed in plant tissues that preserve well in archaeological sediments.
Integrated Expertise
MGPalaeo offers a broad suite of specialist microbotanical services (palynology, microcharcoal, diatoms, and phytoliths) to help Traditional Owner groups, heritage consultants, government bodies, and academic researchers achieve reliable outcomes through detailed environmental and use-wear analysis.
We have supported numerous archaeology projects across Australia and pride ourselves on our rapid turnaround times and ability to handle large volumes of samples. Our purpose-built laboratory in Malaga, Western Australia, allows us to maintain strict quality control standards throughout the entire analysis process.
Palynology
Palynological analysis of archaeological sediments reveals past vegetation, land use, and environmental conditions at sites of human occupation.
Pollen and spore assemblages provide crucial context for understanding how people interacted with and modified their surrounding landscapes.
Paleoenvironmental reconstruction
Past vegetation and climate conditions at archaeological sites.
Human activity indicators
Detecting disturbance through anthropogenic pollen taxa and land use markers.
Agricultural evidence
Identifying crop cultivation, domestication, and land clearance activities.
Site formation analysis
Assessing depositional processes and post-depositional environmental changes.
Microcharcoal
Microcharcoal fragments preserved in sediments provide a record of past fire activity and vegetation burning events.
When encountered during routine palynological analysis, these particles offer valuable insights into paleoenvironmental conditions and landscape change.
Fire history reconstruction
Documenting frequency and intensity of burning events through time.
Paleoclimate correlation
Linking fire regimes to climate variability and environmental shifts.
Human landscape impacts
Identifying land clearance, cultural burning, and vegetation management practices.
Archaeological context
Understanding site formation, occupation patterns, and resource management strategies.
Diatoms
Diatoms are a group of microscopic algae characterized by their unique, silica-based cell walls known as frustules, which exhibit intricate and species-specific patterns.
They are abundant in almost all aquatic environments, including freshwater bodies like lakes and rivers, as well as marine environments such as oceans and estuaries, and can even be found in moist soils and on damp surfaces.
Environmental Reconstruction
Offering insights into past climates and landscapes.
Water Source Identification
Determine the nature of water sources near archaeological sites, such as rivers, lakes, or marine environments.
Climate Change Indicators
Sensitivity to environmental changes makes diatoms valuable for tracking the impacts of climate change over time.
Biomonitoring of Ecosystem Health
Used in biomonitoring programs to assess and manage the health of freshwater and marine environments.
Phytoliths
Phytoliths are microscopic silica bodies formed in plant tissues that preserve well in archaeological sediments, often where pollen is poorly preserved.
These distinctive structures can identify plant taxa to genus or even species level, providing complementary evidence to pollen analysis for reconstructing past environments and human activities.
Plant identification
Species-level identification of grasses, palms, and other economically important plants.
Site use analysisipsum
Identifying activity areas such as cooking zones, storage areas, and living spaces.
Agricultural practices
Detecting crop processing, food preparation, and plant cultivation activities.
Environmental conditions
Reconstructing vegetation and water availability in contexts where pollen is degraded.
With an onsite laboratory at our Malaga office, we are fully set up to provide a full suite of microbotanical services. However, we can also provide additional laboratory services if there is sufficient request (ie, starch analysis, foram analysis, XRF spectrometry, or micromorphology).
If any of these services are of interest, or if there are additional processing or analytical requests that would further improve your archaeological research, please contact us to discuss further.