T A X O N O M Y
Tricolpate Grains
Picture displaying equatorial view (left) and polar view (right) of a tricolpate pollen grain from a tropical plant genus of the Gunneraceae family. These plants have large broad leaves and are often used to provide shelter during rainstorms.
Tricolpate grains are among the earliest pollen representatives of angiosperms in the fossil record. These grains display three folds, or colpi, which extend from both polar extremities and are spaced somewhat evenly around the periphery. The colpi serve as germination furrows for the emerging pollen tube during fertilization.
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