Each sporophyll bears a structure called a sporangium in which the spores are produced. The male cones typically are found in clusters at the tips of lower, side branches, and usually take several years to develop. In these cones, the modified leaves are called microsporophylls . Each microsporophyll bears a microsporangium in which the microspores are produced. A grain of pine pollen also has two large air sacs to make it buoyant in the wind, and these give the pollen a Mickey Mouse hat appearance.
Pollination is the transfer of the whole male gametophyte to the female plant.
In pine, the pollen is blown by wind. The female cones typically form higher up in the tree, and also usually take several years to develop. This stimulates production of the actual megaspore by the female. The pollen forms two sperm nuclei which travel up the pollen tube toward the archegonia. Eventually one of these sperm nuclei fertilizes one of the eggs in one of the archegonia in each of the ovules.