Planktic Foraminiferal Calcite Research Articles

Global Core Top Calibration of δ18O in Planktic Foraminifera to Sea Surface Temperature

AbstractThe oxygen isotopic composition of planktic foraminiferal calcite ( ) is one of the most prevalent proxies used in the paleoceanographic community. The relationship between , temperature, and seawater oxygen isotopic composition ( ) is firmly rooted in thermodynamics, and experimental constraints are commonly used for sea surface temperature (SST) reconstructions. However, in marine sedimentary applications, additional sources of uncertainty emerge, and these uncertainty constraints have not as of yet been included in global calibration models. Here, we compile a global data set of over 2,600 marine sediment core top samples for five planktic species: Globigerinoides ruber, Trilobatus sacculifer, Globigerina bulloides, Neogloboquadrina incompta, and Neogloboquadrina pachyderma. We developed a suite of Bayesian regression models to calibrate the relationship between and SST. Spanning SSTs from 0.0 to 29.5 °C, our annual model with species pooled together has a mean standard error of approximately 0.54‰. Accounting for seasonality and species‐specific differences improves model validation, reducing the mean standard error to 0.47‰. Example applications spanning the Late Quaternary show good agreement with independent alkenone‐based estimates. Our pooled calibration model may also be used for reconstruction in the deeper geological past, using modern planktic foraminifera as an analog for non‐extant species. Our core top‐based models provide a robust assessment of uncertainty in the paleothermometer that can be used in statistical assessments of interproxy and model‐proxy comparisons. The suite of models is publicly available as the Open Source software library bayfox, for Python, R, and MATLAB/Octave.

Evaluating the Effect of Marine Diagenesis on Late Miocene Pre-Evaporitic Sedimentary Successions of Eastern Mediterranean Sea

The microstructure and geochemical composition of foraminiferal tests are valuable archives for the reconstruction of paleoclimatic and paleoecological changes. In this context, the late Miocene Globigerinoides obliquus shells from Faneromeni section (Crete Island) were investigated through Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) imaging, Energy Dispersive System (EDS) analysis and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) spectroscopy in order to evaluate their potential as paleoenvironmental archives in the eastern Mediterranean. Investigation of diagenetic features, in late Miocene sediments from the Faneromeni section, shows that carbonate precipitation and cementation occur in various lithologies, particularly in carbonate-rich portions, such as bioclastic or clayey limestones. We identified 3 different diagenetic stages (early, intermediate, advanced), as a function of taphonomy in the study area. The comparison of microstructural and geochemical characteristics reveals a sequence of preservation states with “glassy” to “frosty” to “chalky” shells, indicative of the progressive diagenetic alteration of late Miocene planktic foraminiferal calcite. The early diagenetic stage occurs during the Tortonian, and consists of intermediates between “glassy” and “frosty” individuals. Around the Tortonian/Messinian (T/M) boundary at the second diagenetic stage, planktonic foraminifera have a clear “frosty” appearance, showing a gradual high-Mg calcite (to dolomite) crystal overgrowth development and dissolution of biogenic calcite. During the late Messinian and progressively through the Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC), planktonic foraminifera present a “chalky” taphonomy. The additional precipitation of authigenic high-Mg inorganic calcite and dolomite crystals in the exterior of the tests characterizes the advanced diagenetic stage. The measured amount of diagenetic Mg-rich (10-14% molar Mg on average) calcite and/or dolomite coatings is compatible with results obtained on modern eastern Mediterranean core-top sediments. The assessment of such a diagenetic alteration contributes to a more precise reconstruction of sea surface temperatures (SSTs) during the Neogene, such that only when the changing proportions of the texture are accounted for, would geochemical measurements and subsequent paleoenvironmental interpretations be more meaningful. However, further investigations should extend this approach to test the robustness of our findings across a range of taphonomies, ages and burial settings.

Stable water isotopes in the MITgcm

Abstract. We present the first results of the implementation of stable water isotopes in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology general circulation model (MITgcm). The model is forced with the isotopic content of precipitation and water vapor from an atmospheric general circulation model (NCAR IsoCAM), while the fractionation during evaporation is treated explicitly in the MITgcm. Results of the equilibrium simulation under pre-industrial conditions are compared to observational data and measurements of plankton tow records (the oxygen isotopic composition of planktic foraminiferal calcite). The broad patterns and magnitude of the stable water isotopes in annual mean seawater are well captured in the model, both at the sea surface as well as in the deep ocean. However, the surface water in the Arctic Ocean is not depleted enough, due to the absence of highly depleted precipitation and snowfall. A model–data mismatch is also recognizable in the isotopic composition of the seawater–salinity relationship in midlatitudes that is mainly caused by the coarse grid resolution. Deep-ocean characteristics of the vertical water mass distribution in the Atlantic Ocean closely resemble observational data. The reconstructed δ18Oc at the sea surface shows a good agreement with measurements. However, the model–data fit is weaker when individual species are considered and deviations are most likely attributable to the habitat depth of the foraminifera. Overall, the newly developed stable water isotope package opens wide prospects for long-term simulations in a paleoclimatic context.

Calibration of the B/Ca proxy in the planktic foraminifer Orbulina universa to Paleocene seawater conditions

AbstractThe B/Ca ratio of planktic foraminiferal calcite, a proxy for the surface ocean carbonate system, displays large negative excursions during the Paleocene‐Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM, 55.9 Ma), consistent with rapid ocean acidification at that time. However, the B/Ca excursion measured at the PETM exceeds a magnitude that modern pH calibrations can explain. Numerous other controls on the proxy have been suggested, including foraminiferal growth rate and the total concentration of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC). Here we present new calibrations for B/Ca versus the combined effects of pH and DIC in the symbiont‐bearing planktic foraminifer Orbulina universa, grown in culture solutions with simulated Paleocene seawater elemental composition (high [Ca], low [Mg], and low total boron concentration ([B]T). We also investigate the isolated effects of low seawater [B]T, high [Ca], reduced symbiont photosynthetic activity, and average shell growth rate on O. universa B/Ca in order to further understand the proxy systematics and to determine other possible influences on the PETM records. We find that average shell growth rate does not appear to determine B/Ca in high calcite saturation experiments. In addition, our “Paleocene” calibration shows higher sensitivity than the modern calibration at low [B(OH)4−]/DIC. Given a large DIC pulse at the PETM, this amplification of the B/Ca response can more fully explain the PETM B/Ca excursion. However, further calibrations with other foraminifer species are needed to determine the range of foraminifer species‐specific proxy sensitivities under these conditions for quantitative reconstruction of large carbon cycle perturbations.

Trace element proxies for surface ocean conditions: A synthesis of culture calibrations with planktic foraminifera

The trace element composition of planktic foraminiferal calcite provides a useful means of determining past surface ocean conditions. We have assembled the results of culture experiments for three species of symbiont-bearing planktic foraminifera, Globigerinoides ruber, Globigerinoides sacculifer, and Orbulina universa, and one symbiont-barren species, Globigerina bulloides, to evaluate their responses to temperature, salinity, pH, carbonate ion, and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) growth conditions. Trace element ratios (Li/Ca, B/Ca, Mg/Ca, Sr/Ca, Mn/Ca, Cd/Ca, Ba/Ca, Na/Ca, and U/Ca) were measured simultaneously on samples grown with the same culture techniques, which provides robust, relatable calibrations that may be used together in multi-proxy paleoceanographic studies. Our data confirm that temperature is the dominant control on foraminiferal Mg/Ca under the ranges of conditions studied and that the potential effects of salinity and CO32− on Mg/Ca of these tropical species across late Pleistocene glacial cycles are relatively small. Carbonate system experiments suggest that Sr/Ca may be useful for reconstructing large DIC changes. Na/Ca increases with salinity in G. ruber (pink), but not in G. sacculifer. As these emerging proxy relationships become more firmly established, the synthesis of multiple trace element ratios may help paleoceanographers isolate the effects of different environmental parameters in paleo records. Calcification rates (μg/day) vary among species and do not respond consistently to any experimental parameter. Comparison of our calcification rates with those observed in inorganic calcite precipitation experiments suggest that foraminifera calcify ∼100× more slowly than inorganic calcites grown in similar solutions. We suggest that calcification rate does not typically exert a dominant control on trace element partitioning in planktic foraminiferal calcite, though it may play a role for some elements under certain circumstances. Differences in average growth rate cannot explain composition differences among species, pointing to alternative controls that may be biological in origin.

Effects of seafloor diagenesis on planktic foraminiferal radiocarbon ages

Abstract Radiocarbon (14C) ages obtained from planktic foraminiferal calcite are a mainstay for reconstructing ocean-climate change and carbon cycle dynamics of the past 30 k.y., yet the effects of diagenesis on this vital chronometer are poorly constrained. Here, we address this shortcoming by comparing 14C ages and trace element ratios (Mg/Ca, Mn/Ca) of planktic foraminifera with white, opaque shells deemed well preserved by traditional standards to those with exquisitely preserved translucent shells. Results support a diagenetic mechanism as opaque shells yield 14C ages invariably older and trace element ratios consistently higher than those of translucent shells. Radiocarbon age offsets are particularly pronounced in mono-specific samples taken from stratigraphic horizons proximal to the δ18O maximum marking the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and the subsequent deglacial. Radiocarbon-based calendar ages of translucent shells from the two intervals are congruent with the established age ranges for these climate events, whereas those of co-occurring opaque shells overestimate the LGM and deglacial by 8–15 k.y. and 14–22 k.y., respectively. These results demonstrate that the use of translucent foraminifera enhances reproducibility and accuracy of 14C ages by minimizing the deleterious effects of diagenesis. This study serves as a cautionary tale since white, opaque foraminifera are common in pelagic sediments, and 14C ages derived from their ostensibly well-preserved shells can lead to discrepancies in the timing of Quaternary climate events and ocean circulation reconstructions.

Plio‐Pleistocene glacial‐interglacial productivity changes in the eastern equatorial Pacific upwelling system

AbstractThe eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean (EEP) upwelling system supports >10% of the present‐day global ocean primary production, making it an important component in Earth's atmospheric and marine carbon budget. Traditionally, it has been argued that since intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation (iNHG, ~2.7 Ma), changes in EEP productivity have predominantly depended on trade wind strength‐controlled upwelling intensity. An alternative hypothesis suggests that EEP productivity is primarily controlled by nutrient supply from the high southern latitudes via mode waters. Here we present new high‐resolution data for the latest Pliocene/early Pleistocene from Ocean Drilling Program Site 849, located within the equatorial divergence system in the heart of the EEP upwelling regime. We use carbon isotopes in benthic and planktic foraminiferal calcite and sand accumulation rates to investigate glacial‐interglacial (G‐IG) productivity fluctuations between 2.65 and 2.4 Ma (marine isotope stages (MIS) G1 to 94). This interval includes MIS 100, 98, and 96, three large‐amplitude glacials (~1‰ in benthic δ18O) representing the culmination of iNHG. Our results suggest that latest Pliocene/early Pleistocene G‐IG productivity changes in the EEP were strongly controlled by nutrient supply from Southern Ocean‐sourced mode waters. Our records show a clear G‐IG cyclicity from MIS 100 onward with productivity levels increasing from full glacial conditions and peaking at glacial terminations. We conclude that enhanced nutrient delivery from high southern latitudes during full glacial conditions together with superimposed intensified regional upwelling toward glacial terminations strongly regulated primary productivity rates in the EEP from MIS 100 onward.

Assessing the impact of diagenesis on δ11B, δ13C, δ18O, Sr/Ca and B/Ca values in fossil planktic foraminiferal calcite

The geochemical composition of foraminiferal tests is a valuable archive for the reconstruction of paleo-climatic, -oceanographic and -ecological changes. However, dissolution of biogenic calcite and precipitation of inorganic calcite (overgrowth and recrystallization) at the seafloor and in the sediment column can potentially alter the original geochemical composition of the foraminiferal test, biasing any resulting paleoenvironmental reconstruction. The δ11B of planktic foraminiferal calcite is a promising ocean pH-proxy but the effect of diagenesis is still poorly known. Here we present new δ11B, δ13C, δ18O, Sr/Ca and B/Ca data from multiple species of planktic foraminifera from time-equivalent samples for two low latitude sites: clay-rich Tanzanian Drilling Project (TDP) Site 18 from the Indian Ocean containing well-preserved (‘glassy’) foraminifera and carbonate-rich Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 865 from the central Pacific Ocean hosting recrystallized (‘frosty’) foraminifera. Our approach makes the assumption that environmental conditions were initially similar at both sites so most chemical differences are attributable to diagenesis. Planktic foraminiferal δ18O and δ13C records show offsets in both relative and absolute values between the two sites consistent with earlier findings that these isotopic ratios are strongly influenced by diagenetic alteration. Sr/Ca and B/Ca ratios in planktic foraminiferal calcite are also offset between the two sites but there is little change in the relative difference between surface and deep dwelling taxa. In contrast, δ11B values indicate no large differences between well-preserved and recrystallized foraminifera suggesting that despite extensive diagenetic alteration the δ11B of biogenic calcite appears robust, potentially indicative of a lack of free exchange of boron between pore fluids and the recrystallizing CaCO3. Our finding may remove one potential source of uncertainty in δ11B based pH reconstructions and provide us with greater confidence in our ability to reconstruct pH in the ancient oceans from at least some recrystallized foraminiferal calcite. However, further investigations should extend this approach to test the robustness of our findings across a range of taphonomies, ages and burial settings.

In situ δ18O and Mg/Ca analyses of diagenetic and planktic foraminiferal calcite preserved in a deep‐sea record of the Paleocene‐Eocene thermal maximum

We report δ18O and minor element (Mg/Ca, Sr/Ca) data acquired by high‐resolution, in situ secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) from planktic foraminiferal shells and 100–500 µm sized diagenetic crystallites recovered from a deep‐sea record (ODP Site 865) of the Paleocene‐Eocene thermal maximum (PETM). The δ18O of crystallites (~1.2‰ Pee Dee Belemnite (PDB)) is ~4.8‰ higher than that of planktic foraminiferal calcite (−3.6‰ PDB), while crystallite Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca ratios are slightly higher and substantially lower than in planktic foraminiferal calcite, respectively. The focused stratigraphic distribution of the crystallites signals an association with PETM conditions; hence, we attribute their formation to early diagenesis initially sourced by seafloor dissolution (burndown) ensued by reprecipitation at higher carbonate saturation. The Mg/Ca ratios of the crystallites are an order of magnitude lower than those predicted by inorganic precipitation experiments, which may reflect a degree of inheritance from “donor” phases of biogenic calcite that underwent solution in the sediment column. In addition, SIMS δ18O and electron microprobe Mg/Ca analyses that were taken within a planktic foraminiferal shell yield parallel increases along traverses that coincide with muricae blades on the chamber wall. The parallel δ18O and Mg/Ca increases indicate a diagenetic origin for the blades, but their δ18O value (−0.5‰ PDB) is lower than that of crystallites suggesting that these two phases of diagenetic carbonate formed at different times. Finally, we posit that elevated levels of early diagenesis acted in concert with sediment mixing and carbonate dissolution to attenuate the δ18O decrease signaling PETM warming in “whole‐shell” records published for Site 865.

Late Pliocene to early Pleistocene changes in the North Atlantic Current and suborbital‐scale sea‐surface temperature variability

AbstractThe strength and latitudinal position of the North Atlantic Current, NAC, determines the position of the Arctic front and heat transport to the high northern latitudes with potentially important consequences for Northern Hemisphere glaciation. A southward shift in the NAC and reduced poleward heat transport is hypothesized to have triggered the last major climate transition in Earth's history—late Pliocene intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation (iNHG). In turn, iNHG is hypothesized to have led to the amplification of climate variability on suborbital time scales. To date, however, only a handful of adequately resolved records are available to test these two hypotheses. Here we present a new late Pliocene to earliest Pleistocene record from Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Site U1313 (North Atlantic, 41°N; 2.9 to 2.4 Ma). We use Mg/Ca‐derived paleotemperature records in planktic foraminiferal calcite to investigate changes in summer sea‐surface temperatures (SST) on orbital and suborbital time scales. Our results call into question the suggestion that significant weakening and/or southward shift of the NAC served as a trigger for Northern Hemisphere cooling and intensified continental ice sheet growth across iNHG. In contrast to the late Pleistocene, during iNHG, we find that the position of the NAC and Arctic Front probably lay well to the north of Site U1313 and that the amplitude of suborbital SST variability did not change on glacial‐interglacial time scales. Conservative estimates of Late Pliocene to earliest Pleistocene interglacial summer SSTs in our record are up to 3°C warmer than present, while glacial summer SSTs are only 2°C to 3°C cooler. In fact, our interglacial summer SSTs are remarkably similar to those of the mid‐Pliocene. Our findings indicate that iNHG must have involved amplifying feedback mechanisms that are tightly coupled to ice sheet growth but that these processes were insufficiently developed by the late Pliocene/earliest Pleistocene to have triggered large amplitude changes in suborbital climate in the midlatitude North Atlantic.

Influence of test size, water depth, and ecology on Mg/Ca, Sr/Ca, δ18O and δ13C in nine modern species of planktic foraminifers

Mg/Ca palaeothermometry in foraminiferal calcite is a widely applied tool in palaeoceanography. However, our understanding of the effects of planktic foraminiferal ecology and early diagenesis on test calcite Mg/Ca is limited. Here we report results of a study designed to shed new light on ecological, size-related and very early (water column) diagenetic controls on Mg/Ca in planktic foraminiferal calcite. We analysed Mg/Ca and stable isotopes of nine modern planktic foraminiferal species across fourteen mostly 50μm-window sieve fractions in a core-top sample from the North Atlantic Ocean. We also analysed Mg/Ca in four of these nine species from plankton-tow samples collected from 0 to 2500m water depth in the North Atlantic Ocean and Arabian Sea. Our core-top study confirms that sensitivity of Mg/Ca to change in test size is species-specific but reveals an overall decrease in Mg/Ca with increasing test size in all but one species, Orbulina universa, for which Mg/Ca increases with size. These findings are broadly consistent with known ecological behaviour suggesting that the size-related signal is largely environmentally rather than calcification-rate controlled. Our results underscore the need to undertake Mg/Ca palaeothermometry on narrow size fractions of planktic foraminifers, particularly for shallow-dwelling species such as G. bulloides and G. ruber where Mg/Ca is most sensitive to test size across the size range of 200–350μm. Our plankton-tow data from the Arabian Sea are in agreement with in-situ temperatures. In contrast, our data from the North Atlantic Ocean reveal large variability and marked offsets (to warmer values) from in-situ temperatures that are interpreted to reflect lateral advection from the south, storm-induced vertical mixing of the water column and/or the influence of surface-water salinity on the Mg/Ca signal. None of our plankton-tow Mg/Ca data shows any evidence of test dissolution in the water column. Our study provides important verification that the Mg/Ca signal recorded during calcification does not undergo diagenetic degradation during test transport to the sea floor, thereby satisfying an important precondition of its palaeo-proxy utility.

Planktic foraminifers as recorders of seawater Ba/Ca

Recent studies have used the Ba/Ca ratio of planktic foraminifer shells as a proxy for river run-off at oceanic sites near estuaries. Such studies assume that the Ba/Ca ratio in planktic foraminifer shells is primarily controlled by the Ba/Ca concentration of seawater and that other parameters such as salinity, temperature and pH do not compromise the primary Ba concentration relationship. Here we provide new insights from culture experiments and review published studies to confirm that environmental parameters including pH, temperature, salinity, and symbiont photosynthesis do not affect Ba substitution into planktic foraminiferal calcite. The partition coefficient for Ba in spinose planktic foraminifers is estimated as D Ba = 0.15 ± 0.05 (95% confidence limits). The same factor also seems applicable to the non-spinose genus Neogloboquadrina but not to specimens of the non-spinose genus Globorotalia . ► Ba/Ca ratios in planktic foraminifer shells are used as a proxy for river runoff. ► Culture experiments were performed to test secondary effects. ► pH, temperature, salinity, and symbiont photosynthesis do not affect Ba uptake. ► Seawater Ba concentrations can be estimated from spinose planktic foraminifer shells.

Millennial-scale climate variability in the subpolar North Atlantic Ocean during the late Pliocene

[1] Large-amplitude millennial-scale climate oscillations have been identified in late Pleistocene climate archives from around the world. These oscillations appear to be of larger amplitude during times of enlarged ice sheets. This observation suggests the existence of a relationship between large-amplitude millennial variations in climate and extreme glacial conditions and therefore that the emergence of millennial-scale climate variability may be linked to the Pliocene intensification of northern hemisphere glaciation (iNHG). Here we test this hypothesis using new late Pliocene high-resolution (∼400 year) records of ice-rafted debris deposition and stable isotopes in planktic foraminiferal calcite (Globigerinoides ruber) generated from Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Site U1313 in the subpolar North Atlantic (a reoccupation of the classic Deep Sea Drilling Project Site 607). Our records span marine oxygen isotope stages (MIS) 103–95 (∼2600 to 2400 ka), the first interval during iNHG (∼3.5 to 2.5 Ma) in which large-amplitude glacial-interglacial cycles and inferred sea level changes occur. Our records reveal small-amplitude variability at periodicities of ∼1.8 to 6.2 kyr that prevails regardless of (inter)glacial state with no significant amplification during the glacials MIS 100, 98, and 96. These findings imply that the threshold for the amplification of such variability to the proportions seen in the marine archive of the last glacial was not crossed during the late Pliocene and, in view of all available data, likely not until the Mid-Pleistocene Transition.

Preservation of benthic foraminifera and reliability of deep‐sea temperature records: Importance of sedimentation rates, lithology, and the need to examine test wall structure

Preservation of planktic foraminiferal calcite has received widespread attention in recent years, but the taphonomy of benthic foraminiferal calcite and its influence on the deep‐sea palaeotemperature record have gone comparatively unreported. Numerical modeling indicates that the carbonate recrystallization histories of deep‐sea sections are dominated by events in their early burial history, meaning that the degree of exchange between sediments and pore fluids during the early postburial phase holds the key to determining the palaeotemperature significance of diagenetic alteration of benthic foraminifera. Postburial sedimentation rate and lithology are likely to be important determinants of the paleoceanographic significance of this sediment–pore fluid interaction. Here we report an investigation of the impact of extreme change in sedimentation rate (a prolonged and widespread Upper Cretaceous hiatus in the North Atlantic Ocean) on the preservation and δ18O of benthic foraminifera of Middle Cretaceous age (nannofossil zone NC10, uppermost Albian/lowermost Cenomanian, ∼99 Ma ago) from multiple drill sites. At sites where this hiatus immediately overlies NC10, benthic foraminifera appear to display at least moderate preservation of the whole test. However, on closer inspection, these tests are shown to be extremely poorly preserved internally and yield δ18O values substantially higher than those from contemporaneous better preserved benthic foraminifera at sites without an immediately overlying hiatus. These high δ18O values are interpreted to indicate alteration close to the seafloor in cooler waters during the Late Cretaceous hiatus. Intersite differences in lithology modulate the diagenetic impact of this extreme change in sedimentation rate. Our results highlight the importance of thorough examination of benthic foraminiferal wall structures and lend support to the view that sedimentation rate and lithology are key factors controlling the paleoceanographic significance of diagenetic alteration of biogenic carbonates.

Planktic foraminiferal dissolution in the twilight zone

Abstract Calcite dissolution of planktic foraminifers that settle from the surface ocean to depths has been assessed using the weight/size relationship of tests and correlated to carbonate ion concentration ( [ CO 3 2 - ] ) of ambient sea water. Globigerina bulloides and Globigerinita glutinata were sampled from the North Atlantic and the Arabian Sea during different seasons (spring and fall and the monsoons, respectively). Test weight has been determined for single tests from narrow size classes ( 250 ± 8 μ m and 300 ± 7 μ m minimum test diameter). Initial test weight of both species in surface waters differs between regions and seasons. Weight loss of settling tests in the twilight zone between 100 and 1000 m water depths averaged 19%. Below the twilight zone (1000–2500 m) no weight loss occurs on average, and tests may even gain weight. Remineralization of settling planktic foraminiferal tests is most pronounced at maximum Δ CO 3 2 - . Accordingly, strong dissolution occurs in the twilight zone, at the depth of maximum decrease in Δ CO 3 2 - . It is assumed that dissolution of planktic foraminiferal calcite is caused by CO 3 2 - (under-) saturation inside the test, buffered by diffusive exchange of CO 3 2 - ions with the ambient sea water through the pores and aperture. Consequently, reconstruction of small-scale differences in seawater [ CO 3 2 - ] from test weight alone is not feasible and systematic correlation between test weight and Δ CO 3 2 - of the ambient sea water is statistically not significant. At constant [ CO 3 2 - ] , remineralization cannot be deduced from test weight, neither at high nor low CO 3 2 - saturation. In total, our data suggest that the global vertical planktic foraminiferal CaCO 3 flux is about 19% lower than calculated by Schiebel [2002. Planktic foraminiferal sedimentation and the marine calcite budget. Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 16 (4), 1065 [doi: 10.1029/2001GB001459]].

Microstructural and geochemical perspectives on planktic foraminiferal preservation: “Glassy” versus “Frosty”

In recent years it has become apparent that the “cool tropic paradox” of Paleogene and Cretaceous “greenhouse” climates arises because of the diagenetic alteration of tropical planktic foraminiferal calcite near the seafloor, yielding artificially high δ18O values. Because the Mg/Ca compositions of foraminiferal and inorganic calcite are thought to be quite different, Mg/Ca measurements should be a sensitive way of monitoring diagenetic alteration. Here we examine the extent of diagenetic alteration of Eocene planktic foraminiferal calcite using scanning electron microscope imaging of foraminiferal test microstructures and geochemical (δ18O and Mg/Ca) analyses. We compare microstructural and geochemical characteristics between given species exhibiting two contrasting states of preservation: those that appear “frosty” under reflected light and those that appear “glassy.” Microstructural evidence reveals extensive diagenetic alteration of frosty foraminiferal tests at the micron scale, while δ18O analyses document consistently higher δ18O (and therefore lower paleotemperatures) in this material. Yet we find that δ18O offsets between species in these frosty foraminiferal assemblages appear to be generally preserved, suggesting that frosty foraminifera remain valuable for generating relatively short (approximately ≤1 Myr) paleoceanographic time series that do not demand absolute estimates of paleotemperature. We also find that the observed increase in Mg/Ca for planktic foraminifera exhibiting diagenetic alteration (compared to glassy taphonomies) is far smaller than would be expected from the addition of inorganic calcite based on laboratory‐derived Mg2+ partition coefficients. Our findings imply that a much lower Mg2+ partition coefficient controls inorganic calcite formation in deep sea sedimentary sections, in accordance with the findings of Baker et al. (1982).

Palaeoecology of late middle Eocene planktic foraminifera and evolutionary implications

The late middle Eocene is marked by accelerated global cooling, representing part of the long transitional interval separating the early Eocene ‘greenhouse’ and later Oligocene ‘icehouse’ climatic regimes. This time interval is also regarded as having witnessed a decline in planktic foraminiferal diversity following the extinction of most of the muricate clade (genera Acarinina and Morozovelloides) at approximately 39 Ma. Here we examine planktic foraminiferal assemblages recovered at ODP Site 1052 (Blake Nose, NW Atlantic) and, by recording a high level of taxonomic diversity including several previously undocumented morphotypes, we suggest that the diversity of late middle Eocene planktic foraminifera may have been underestimated. Depth habitats of every species within these late middle Eocene assemblages are reconstructed using oxygen and carbon stable isotope ratios. Furthermore, because stable isotope analyses suggest that species of Globoturborotalita appear to have generally calcified during winter months, these taxa offer, in combination with predominantly summer surface dwellers such as Morozovelloides, the potential to reconstruct patterns of seasonality during the late Palaeogene. Using extremely well preserved ‘glassy’ planktic foraminiferal calcite from a contemporaneous hemipelagic drill site, detailed SEM imaging of test microstructures and wall textures confirm that many modern features of foraminiferal ecology and test architecture had already evolved by the late middle Eocene. The common occurrence of the cancellate wall texture, combined with the wide variety of reconstructed foraminiferal depth habitats, indicates that there is no necessary relationship between foraminiferal wall textures and habitat and that wall textures are evolutionary conservative features of the foraminiferal test.

Planktic foraminiferal sedimentation and the marine calcite budget

The vertical flux and sedimentation rate of planktic foraminiferal tests are quantified and a global planktic foraminiferal CaCO3 budget is presented. Test and calcite flux rates are calculated according to the distribution of species obtained from multinet and sediment trap samples. Modern planktic foraminiferal population dynamics are discussed as a prerequisite for the quantification of the calcite budget, highlighting the importance of ecological, autecological (e.g., reproduction), and biogeochemical conditions that determine the presence or absence of species. To complete the open‐marine, particulate CaCO3 inventory, the contribution of coccolithophores, pteropods, and calcareous dinophytes is discussed. Based on the studied regions, the global planktic foraminiferal calcite flux rate at 100 m depth amounts to 1.3–3.2 Gt yr−1, equivalent to 23–56% of the total open marine CaCO3 flux. The preservation of tests varies on a regional and temporal scale, and is affected by local hydrography and dissolution. During most of the year (off‐peak periods), many tests dissolve above 700‐m water depth while settling through the water column, with on average only 1–3% of the initially exported CaCO3 reaching the deep‐seafloor. Pulsed flux events, mass dumps of fast settling particles, yield a major contribution of tests to the formation of deep‐sea sediments. On average, ∼25% of the initially produced planktic foraminiferal test CaCO3 settles on the seafloor. The total planktic foraminiferal contribution of CaCO3 to global surface sediments amounts to 0.36–0.88 Gt yr−1, ∼32–80% of the total deep‐marine calcite budget.