Pollen analysis on spotted hyaena (Crocuta crocuta) coprolites from the fossiliferous site of Buca della Jena, Southern Tuscany (Roselle, Grosseto, Italy)

Pollen studies in fossil faecal remains may provide significant palaeoclimatic, palaeovegetational and palaeoeth-nological information. These data can be decisive where other substrates are not available for pollen analysis.Coprolites, thanks to their hardness, can preserve pollen grains for a long time, isolating them and preventingexine oxidation. It is known that pollen is incorporated into coprolites in different ways: by the ingestion withfood or water, by the licking of the fur.