The authors carried out palynological analyses of ten surface samples from October Revolution Island (Severnaya Zemlya). They also trapped airborne pollen and spores on the Vavilov Ice Cap. Tree pollen (from pine, spruce, alder, birch, and in one case lime) was well represented in all samples, although the local vegetation is that of various tundra associations. The results reinforce the dangers implicit in reconstruction of Pleistocene environments on the basis of palynology in the High Arctic.