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Surface pollen and stomata of 61 samples collected in a study area ranging from tropical seasonal rainforest to oak forest ( Quercus spinosa) in the Yulong Snow Mountain region in Yunnan, China, are used to distinguish vegetation communities. The results show that tropical seasonal rainforest (and mountain rainforest), south subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest, and Quercus shrub are distinguished effectively from other vegetation types by analysis of surface pollen. The south subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest, Pinus kesiya forest and evergreen broadleaf forest are distinguished effectively from other types of vegetation by pollen analysis. However, P. yunnanensis forest is not distinguished from other vegetation types, and P. armandii, P. densata forest and temperate deciduous conifer mixed forest are not distinguished. The over-representation of Pinus pollen is the main reason that these vegetation communities are not distinguished from each other. Conifer stomata analysis is an effective tool for identifying and distinguishing different types of coniferous forest, and this method performs well even with a small number of sampling points. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]