Recent benthic foraminifers as indicators of the sedimentary dynamics of the Tina Mayor and Tina Menor estuaries (S Bay of Biscay, N Spain)

Benthic foraminifers as a proxy of the range of the tidal wave in the Oyambre Estuary (Cantabria, Spain)

The roles of elevation and salinity as primary controls on living foraminiferal distributions: Cowpen Marsh, Tees Estuary, UK

Dataset S1 (separate file). Relative sea-level database for Scilly comprising directly dated radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence samples with corresponding metainformation (lithostratigraphy, elevation, depositional environment and indicative meaning interpretations, paleotidal range change and sea-level calculations) following the ‘HOLSEA’ (‘Geographic Variability of Holocene Relative Sea Level’) protocol (Khan et al., 2019*). Dataset S2 (separate file). Table containing pollen results as relative abundance (genus level), modelled ages and age uncertainty for pollen samples, landcover index results (community cluster numbers and nMDS ordination axes 1 and 2), foraminifera results as species counts and transfer function results as paleomarsh elevations with uncertainty (1σ). Foraminifera samples with low test concentrations have indicative ranges (from mean high water neap tides to highest astronomical tides) in place of paleomarsh elevation estimations. Foraminifera abbreviations: H.wil – Haplophragmoides wilbertii ; J.mac – Jadammina macrescens ; M.fus – Miliammina fusca ; P.ipo – Polysaccammina ipohalina ; T.inf – Trochammina infalta ; T.och – Trochammina ochracea ; A.bat - Ammonia batavus ; A.mam – Asterigerinata mamilla ; B.var – Bolivina variablis; E.cri – Elphidium crispum ; E.wil – Elphidium Williamsoni ; F.spp. – Fissurina spp. ; Elphidium spp. ; H.ger – Haynesina germanica ; L.lob – Lobatula lobatula ; O.spp. – Oolha spp. ; Q.sem – Quinqueloculina seminula; R.spp. – Rosalina spp.. Dataset S3 (separate file). Database containing three worksheets for developing archaeological indices for Scilly. ‘SWBritain’ – Radiocarbon dates from Devon and Cornwall used to develop a summed probability distribution curve as an estimate of population demographic variation in Southwest Britain. ‘NWFrance’ - Radiocarbon dates from Brittany and Normandy used to develop a summed probability distribution curve as an estimate of population demography in Northwest France. ‘Scilly’ – Archaeological monuments from Scilly used to develop a probabilistic index of population variability.

Analyses of the compositions of benthic foraminifera and sediment, observations of tidal level and salinity, and a geographic survey of the tidal salt marsh in Suncheon Bay were conducted to examine the vertical distribution of foraminifera and evaluate their potential use for sea level studies. The salt marsh is composed mainly of fine-grained silty clay sediment and its salinity is below approximately 11 psu. The tidal current flows in the southwest-tonortheast direction with an average velocity of 26.57 cm/s. A total of 33 species of foraminifera (17 agglutinated and 16 calcareoushyaline) belonging to 24 genera was identified. The species diversity (1.1 on average) was relatively low. Dominant species were Ammonia beccarii, Miliammina fusca, Haplophragmoides wilberti, and Jadammina macrescens. Calcareous foraminifera (29.5%) were dominantly represented by the Ammonia beccarii assemblage, which characterized the region between mean tide level and mean low high water (MLHW). Agglutinated species (70.5%) were represented mostly by Miliammina fusca, Miliammina fusca-Haplophragmoides wilberti, and Haplophragmoides wilberti assemblages, which characterized the MLHW–mean high water (MHW), MHW–mean highest high water (MHHW), and MHHW–Approx. highest high water tide levels, respectively. In particular, the Haplophragmoides wilberti assemblage is believed to represent the highest elevation zone of foraminifera in the salt marshes of Suncheon Bay and is considered to be a reliable indicator of sea level as a result of its narrow vertical range.

The application of intertidal foraminifera to reconstruct coastal subsidence during the giant Cascadia earthquake of AD 1700 in Oregon, USA

Recent benthic foraminifers of the Basque continental shelf (Bay of Biscay, northern Spain): Oceanographic implications

A seasonal study of temperature and salinity of estuarine and sediment interstitial water of tidal marshes was undertaken along three estuaries of W Portuguese coast (Minho, Tejo and Mira).The climatic N-S transition from wet Atlantic to Mediterranean features appear clearly imprinted in the distribution of tidal marsh assemblages, like foraminifera and ostracoda, mainly reflecting the water salinity gradient control.The Minho low estuary tidal marsh tends to be flooded by estuarine water ranging from 0.5‰ to 32‰ in each tide cycle, even during dry seasons. However, the marsh hydrological balance sustains a more stable environment where the salinity of interstitial water measurements yielded 8‰ to 16‰. In contrast the Tejo and Mira salt marsh flooding waters record a narrow range between 33‰ and 36‰, in spring, and between 29‰ and 36‰ in autumn. The climatic control of evaporation/ precipitation balance produces an enhanced salinity of marsh interstitial water, that can reach hypersaline conditions, with maximum records of 53‰ in Tejo and 48‰ in Mira lower estuaries.These environmental differences along the W Portuguese coast are recorded by the tidal marsh assemblages, namely foraminifera and ostracoda. In the low salinity Caminha salt marsh, living foraminifera are essentially composed by the agglutinated species Haplophragmoides manilaensis, Miliammina fusca, Pseudothurammina limnetis Psammosphaera sp. and Trochamminita salsa. The modern ostracoda assemblage includes Leptochytere baltica, Leptochytere psammophila, Leptocythere sp. A and Tuberoloxoconcha sp.1. In the Tejo and Mira salt marsh Ammonia beccarii, Ammonia tepida, Haynesina germanica, Jadammina macrescens, Trochammina inflata, are the dominant foraminifera and Loxoconcha malcomsoni, Terrestricythere cf. elisabethae, Tuberoloxoconcha cf. atlantica and Xestoleberis labiata prevail as well as many other more marine ostracoda species, such as Basslerites teres and Leptocythere fabaeformis.This study highlights that the knowledge of driven ecological parameters of modern assemblages (usually preserved in fossil record), is fundamental to support reliable paleoclimatic and palaeoenvironmental reconstructions.

Distribution of foraminifera in salt marshes along the Atlantic coast of SW Europe: Tools to reconstruct past sea-level variations

Research Article| April 01, 2005 INFAUNAL MARSH FORAMINIFERA FROM THE OUTER BANKS, NORTH CAROLINA, U.S.A. Stephen J. Culver; Stephen J. Culver 1Department of Geology, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858, USA. E-mail: culvers@mail.ecu.edu Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Benjamin P. Horton Benjamin P. Horton 2Sea Level Research Laboratory, Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104. Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Stephen J. Culver 1Department of Geology, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858, USA. E-mail: culvers@mail.ecu.edu Benjamin P. Horton 2Sea Level Research Laboratory, Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104. Publisher: Cushman Foundation for Foraminiferal Research Received: 14 Jan 2004 Accepted: 29 Oct 2004 First Online: 03 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-264X Print ISSN: 0096-1191 © 2005 Journal of Foraminiferal Research Journal of Foraminiferal Research (2005) 35 (2): 148–170. https://doi.org/10.2113/35.2.148 Article history Received: 14 Jan 2004 Accepted: 29 Oct 2004 First Online: 03 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Stephen J. Culver, Benjamin P. Horton; INFAUNAL MARSH FORAMINIFERA FROM THE OUTER BANKS, NORTH CAROLINA, U.S.A.. Journal of Foraminiferal Research 2005;; 35 (2): 148–170. doi: https://doi.org/10.2113/35.2.148 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyJournal of Foraminiferal Research Search Advanced Search Abstract The distribution and abundance of live (rose Bengal stained) and dead, shallow infaunal (0–1 cm depth) and deep infaunal (>1 cm depth) benthic foraminifera have been documented at three locations representing different salinity settings on the fringing marshes along the Pamlico Sound and Currituck Sound coasts of North Carolina’s Outer Banks. Two cores taken at each site represent the lower and higher marsh.Twenty-two taxa were recorded as live. Of these, eight taxa were found only at shallow infaunal depths; the other 14 taxa occur at deep infaunal depths in one or more cores. Only Jadammina macrescens and Tiphotrocha comprimata were recorded as living in all six cores. The distributions of the other taxa were restricted by combinations of infaunal depth, salinity regime and location on the marsh.The tests of infaunal foraminifera were generally more likely to be preserved in the lower marsh than the higher marsh at low- and intermediate-salinity sites. The opposite pattern was evident at the high-salinity site but this may be due to the low numbers of deep infaunal specimens recovered. Arenoparrella mexicana, Haplophragmoides wilberti, Jadammina macrescens and Trochammina inflata are the most resistant taxa, whereas Miliammina fusca is the species whose tests are most likely to be lost to post-mortem degradation. In five of the six cores, foraminiferal assemblages and populations do not differ significantly with depth which suggests that the foraminifera of the 0–1 cm depth interval provide an adequate model upon which paleoenvironmental (including former sea level) reconstructions can be based. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Abstract. The areas of coastal marsh studied in Mill Rythe Creek, Chichester Harbour, southern England, support a fluctuating foraminiferal assemblage which, although similar to those recorded in other parts of the UK and the Atlantic seaboard of North America, has its own distinctive assemblage of species. This is due to the constantly high salinity of the water here. Unusually, these marshes do not receive freshwater input from a nearby river and thus are not subject to tidal fluctuations in salinity.The mid-marsh Site 1 has a fauna consisting of typical marsh species, e.g., Jadammina macrescens, Trochammina inflata and Miliammina fusca. In addition, normal marine salinity allows Quinqueloculina oblonga to flourish and even dominate the fauna in most samples. The lower marsh Site 2 contains a typical marsh fauna dominated by hyaline forms. The dominance of Ammonia beccarii [aberdoveyensis] is most characteristic of the lower marsh, together with Haynesina germanica. The normal marine salinity of the marsh can again be confirmed by the high abundance of Quinqueloculina oblonga.The results of a replicate sampling regime employed in this study clearly demonstrate the patchy nature of the living foraminiferal distribution in marsh environments over small lateral distances as well as the high seasonal variability of foraminiferal abundances.

This study examined the environmental factors that control the distribution of modern foraminiferal assemblages in the Everglades in order to provide baseline data for a paleoenvironmental study. Total assemblages from the surface 2 cm of 30 sites across the marsh and mangrove environments of southwest Florida were investigated. Eight environmental variables, including average salinity, salinity range, pH, total phosphorus, temperature, and dissolved oxygen, and total organic carbon and total inorganic carbon measured on bulk sediments, as well as the elevation and distance from the coastline were determined for each of the 30 sampling locations. In total, 82 species were identified, the majority of which were calcareous. Diversity decreases, dominance increases, and agglutinated taxa increase from the coastline inland. Rotaliina are equally abundant across the intertidal environment, whereas Miliolina are common near the coast and in lagoons or inland lakes. The most important factor controlling foraminiferal distribution is total organic carbon, followed by total inorganic carbon, distance from coastline, total phosphorus, and salinity. Jadammina macrescens and Miliammina fusca indicate lower salinities (<15 psu). Good indicators for higher salinities are Haplophragmoides wilberti (10–20 psu) and Arenoparrella mexicana (10–20 psu and 28–30 psu). Ammonia spp. prefer salinities >15 psu and Elphidium spp. >20 psu. Ammonia tepida, Helenina anderseni, Trochammina inflata, and A. mexicana prefer organic-rich sediments. Thus, the benthic foraminifera from Everglades sediments are excellent salinity proxies and can be used to determine the history of habitat change in this area as well as to assess past trends in the rate of sea level rise.

Foraminiferal microhabitats in a high marsh: Consequences for reconstructing past sea levels

Distribution of modern salt-marsh foraminifera in the Albemarle–Pamlico estuarine system of North Carolina, USA: Implications for sea-level research

We investigated the influence of inter-annual and seasonal differences on the distribution of live and dead foraminifera, and the inter-annual variability of stable carbon isotopes (d 13 C), total organic carbon (TOC) values and carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratios in bulk sediments from intertidal environments of Bandon Marsh (Oregon, USA). Living and dead foraminiferal species from 10 stations were analyzed over two successive years in the summer (dry) and fall (wet) seasons. There were insignificant inter-annual and seasonal variations in the distribution of live and dead species. But there was a noticeable decrease in calcareous assemblages (Haynesina sp.) between live populations and dead assemblages, indicating that most of the calcareous tests were dissolved after burial; the agglutinated assemblages were comparable between constituents. The live populations and dead assemblages were dominated by Miliammina fusca in the tidal flat and low marsh, Jadammina macrescens, Trochammina inflata and M. fusca in the high marsh, and Trochamminita irregularis and Balticammina pseudomacrescens in the highest marsh to upland. Geochemical analyses (d 13 C, TOC and C/N of bulk sedimentary organic matter) show no significant influence of inter-annual variations but a significant correlation of d 13 C values (R = 20.820, p , 0.001), TOC values (R = 0.849, p , 0.001) and C/N ratios (R = 0.885, p , 0.001) to elevation with respect to the tidal frame. Our results suggest that foraminiferal assemblages and d 13 C and TOC values, as well as C/N ratios, in Bandon

Salt-marsh foraminifera are used as precise sea-levelchange indicators as surface assemblages vary in relation totheir position in the tidal frame. Surface-sediment sampleswere collected across an elevation gradient at Galpins saltmarsh, South Africa, to study the vertical distribution offoraminifera and their potential use for sea-level studies. Themarsh is divided into three vertical zones (high marsh, middlemarsh, and mud flats) represented by three assemblagegroups, with agglutinated species restricted to the upperreaches of the marsh and calcareous species more dominanttowards the intertidal channel. The high marsh area isdominated by Jadammina macrescens with a presence ofTrochammina inflata. The middle marsh is characterised byboth T. inflata and Miliammina fusca. Calcareous speciesfound in the mud flats consist of Haynesina germanica,Ammonia batava, and Quinqueloculina sp. This paperdescribes how marsh foraminifera can be used to definesmall-scale vertical zones along modern marsh surfaces andhow these zones correspond to floral zones. We demonstratethat marsh foraminifera have potential to be used as preciseindicators for sea-level reconstructions in South Africa.INTRODUCTIONModern foraminiferal assemblages form discrete verticalzones in salt marshes, strongly correlated with tidal levels(Scott et al., 2001; Gehrels & Newman, 2004). Therelationship between modern foraminiferal distributionand a range of environmental variables, including elevation,vegetation cover, pH, and salinity, can be preciselyquantified (e.g., using multivariate statistics), representinga modern analogue against which to compare fossilassemblages. Salt marshes experience daily and seasonalvariations in salinity and frequency of flooding linked totidal overflow. Several authors suggest that verticalzonation of foraminifera is strongly related to elevation,especially in temperate environments (Scott & Medioli,1980; Scott & Leckie, 1990; Horton & Edwards, 2003, 2006;Leorri et al., 2010).It is well known that a variety of ecological controls exertan influence on the distribution of surface foraminifera(e.g., Murray, 1971; Scott et al., 1998; Horton, 1999),although assemblages are consistently shown to be verti-cally zoned in accordance with tidal frames, either directlyor indirectly (Berkeley et al., 2007). A study conducted inthe Great Marshes of Massachusetts by De Rijk T Horton & Edwards, 2006).Modern analogues of marsh foraminifera are traditionallycollected at the location where a sediment core is extractedfor palaeontological analysis (Gehrels, 1994; Kemp et al.,2009). Where assemblages are identified solely at a singlesite, some fossil samples may lack a modern analogue,thereby compromising the accuracy of the reconstruction(Murray, 2006). This lack of modern analogues could beaddressed by sampling a broader range of contemporaryenvironments (Hayward et al., 2004; Horton & Edwards,2006; Kemp et al., 2009).Researchers have debated the best assemblage make-upfor foraminiferal population studies. Some advocate totalassemblage use, indicating environmental conditions forboth seasonal and temporal fluctuations (Scott et al., 2001;Horton et al., 2005). According to Murray (1971), livingpopulations best represent the modern environment as theuse of dead assemblages alone fails to account for post-mortem changes. However, it can be argued that thedistribution of living assemblages will be dependent on theconditions at time of sampling and not an average overtime. In temperate environments some suggest it isimportant to exclusively use dead assemblages as they arenot susceptible to seasonal variations, thus accuratelyreflecting subsurface assemblages (Murray, 1979; Hortonet al., 2005; Horton & Murray, 2007). On occasion, trainingsets comprised of total assemblages (live + dead) are stillused based on the assumption that live assemblages in timewill contribute to the fossil record (Booth et al., 2010). Astudy conducted on foraminiferal assemblages in surfacesediments from a marsh in Nova Scotia concluded thattotal foraminiferal assemblages provide a good basis forpalaeoenvironmental studies (Scott & Medioli, 1980).Previous studies have described the distribution of salt-marsh foraminifera in temperate environments (e.g. Leorriet al., 2010). The highest intertidal zones are oftendominated by Jadammina macrescens and Trochamminainflata, which are replaced by species such as Haplophrag-moides sp. and Miliammina fusca as elevation decreases(Hawkes et al., 2010). Agglutinated species are prevalent inthe upper and middle marsh while calcareous species arescarce. This relationship depends on the accessibility of