Research Article| December 01, 2001 Planktonic foraminiferal response to the 1997–1998 El Niño: A sediment-trap record from the Santa Barbara Basin David E. Black; David E. Black 1Department of Geology, University of Akron, Akron, Ohio 44325, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Robert C. Thunell; Robert C. Thunell 2Department of Geological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina 29208, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Eric J. Tappa Eric J. Tappa 2Department of Geological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina 29208, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information David E. Black 1Department of Geology, University of Akron, Akron, Ohio 44325, USA Robert C. Thunell 2Department of Geological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina 29208, USA Eric J. Tappa 2Department of Geological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina 29208, USA Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 18 Apr 2001 Revision Received: 10 Jul 2001 Accepted: 27 Jul 2001 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (2001) 29 (12): 1075–1078. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2001)029<1075:PFRTTE>2.0.CO;2 Article history Received: 18 Apr 2001 Revision Received: 10 Jul 2001 Accepted: 27 Jul 2001 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation David E. Black, Robert C. Thunell, Eric J. Tappa; Planktonic foraminiferal response to the 1997–1998 El Niño: A sediment-trap record from the Santa Barbara Basin. Geology 2001;; 29 (12): 1075–1078. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2001)029<1075:PFRTTE>2.0.CO;2 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 SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Here we report results on a sediment-trap study from the Santa Barbara Basin in which we examine the response of planktonic foraminifera to El Niño conditions. Planktonic foraminifera census counts were performed on biweekly sediment-trap samples collected over the interval spanning late summer 1995 through early spring 1998, a period that captured the transition from “normal” conditions in 1996 to full El Niño conditions during early 1997 through early 1998. Intra-annual variations in the foraminifera assemblage reflect changes in seasonal climate variability, significant differences occurring in both foraminiferal relative abundance and flux values between non–El Niño and El Niño years. Warmer waters in the basin during late 1997 were reflected by a significantly increased presence of warmer-water species generally absent under normal conditions. Surprisingly, despite greatly reduced upwelling conditions, foraminiferal flux values during the spring 1997 upwelling season were more than four times greater than the year before. The contrast between normal and El Niño foraminifer populations has important implications for reconstructing the past history of both El Niño events and more general climate histories from the Santa Barbara Basin varved sediment record. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.