Ninety-five scanning electron micrographs of pollen exines with perfor
ations, lumina, pits, or depressions were photocopied from the palynol
ogical literature, examined by computerized image analysis, and catego
rized using existing numerical definitions for reticulate, microreticu
late, scrobiculate, punctate and foveolate. For comparison, we also re
corded descriptive terms used for these pollen surfaces in the origina
l literature source. Most exines examined were reticulate, microreticu
late or scrobiculate. Only two were punctate, an anomaly we attributed
to sampling bias. No exines were foveolate. We concluded that pollen
exines with foveolate surfaces are very rare or non-existent. We also
demonstrated that many overlapping sculpture terms are used to describ
e very similar exines, a situation that may adversely affect the usefu
lness of palynological information in larger systematic data sets.