Showing papers on "Foraminifera published in 2013"

Carbon isotope records reveal precise timing of enhanced Southern Ocean upwelling during the last deglaciation.

Abstract: The Southern Ocean plays a prominent role in the Earth’s climate and carbon cycle. Changes in the Southern Ocean circulation may have regulated the release of CO2 to the atmosphere from a deep-ocean reservoir during the last deglaciation. However, the path and exact timing of this deglacial CO2 release are still under debate. Here we present measurements of deglacial surface reservoir 14C age changes in the eastern Pacific sector of the Southern Ocean, obtained by 14C dating of tephra deposited over the marine and terrestrial regions. These results, along with records of foraminifera benthic–planktic 14C age and δ13C difference, provide evidence for three periods of enhanced upwelling in the Southern Ocean during the last deglaciation, supporting the hypothesis that Southern Ocean upwelling contributed to the deglacial rise in atmospheric CO2. These independently dated marine records suggest synchronous changes in the Southern Ocean circulation and Antarctic climate during the last deglaciation.

Atlas of Benthic Foraminifera

Abstract: Deep-sea benthic foraminifera have played a central role in biostratigraphic, paleoecological, and paleoceanographical research for over a century. These single-celled marine protists are important because of their geographic ubiquity, distinction morphologies and rapid evolutionary rates, their abundance and diversity deep-sea sediments, and because of their utility as indicators of environmental conditions both at and below the sediment-water interface. In addition, stable isotopic data obtained from deep-sea benthic foraminiferal tests provide paleoceanographers with environmental information that is proving to be of major significance in studies of global climatic change. This work collects together, for the first time, new morphological descriptions, taxonomic placements, stratigraphic occurrence data, geographical distribution summaries, and palaeoecological information, along with state-of-the-art colour photomicrographs (most taken in reflected light, just as you would see them using light microscopy), of 300 common deep-sea benthic foraminifera species spanning the interval from Jurassic - Recent. This volume is intended as a reference and research resource for post-graduate students in micropalaeontology, geological professionals (stratigraphers, paleontologists, paleoecologists, palaeoceanographers), taxonomists, and evolutionary (paleo)biologists.

Atlantic cooling associated with a marine biotic crisis during the mid-Cretaceous period

Abstract: Most of the marine biotic crises that occurred during the hot Mesozoic era have been linked to episodes of extreme warmth(1,2). Others, however, may have occurred during cooler intervals that interrupted Cretaceous greenhouse warmth(3-5). There are some indications of cooling in the late Aptian(6-8) (116-114 Myr ago), but it has not been definitively linked to biotic crisis. Here we assess the timing and magnitude of late Aptian cooling and its association with biotic crises using a suite of geochemical and micropalaeontological assessments from a marine sediment core from the North Atlantic Ocean as well as global biogeochemical modelling. Sea surface temperatures derived from the TEX86 proxy suggest that surface waters cooled by about 5 degrees C during the two million years, coincident with a positive delta C-13 excursion of approximately 2 parts per thousand in carbonates and organic carbon. Surface productivity was enhanced during this period, but the abundance of planktonic foraminifera and nannoconid phytoplankton declined. Our simulations with a biogeochemical model indicate that the delta C-13 excursion associated with the cooling could be explained by the burial of about 812,000 gigatons of carbon over 2.5 million years. About 50% of the this carbon burial occurred in the Atlantic, Southern and Tethys ocean basins. We conclude that global cooling during greenhouse conditions can cause perturbations to marine ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles at scales comparable to those associated with global warming

Ancient DNA complements microfossil record in deep-sea subsurface sediments

Abstract: Deep-sea subsurface sediments are the most important archives of marine biodiversity. Until now, these archives were studied mainly using the microfossil record, disregarding large amounts of DNA accumulated on the deep-sea floor. Accessing ancient DNA (aDNA) molecules preserved down-core would offer unique insights into the history of marine biodiversity, including both fossilized and non-fossilized taxa. Here, we recover aDNA of eukaryotic origin across four cores collected at abyssal depths in the South Atlantic, in up to 32.5 thousand-year-old sediment layers. Our study focuses on Foraminifera and Radiolaria, two major groups of marine microfossils also comprising diverse non-fossilized taxa. We describe their assemblages in down-core sediment layers applying both micropalaeontological and environmental DNA sequencing approaches. Short fragments of the foraminiferal and radiolarian small subunit rRNA gene recovered from sedimentary DNA extracts provide evidence that eukaryotic aDNA is preserved in deep-sea sediments encompassing the last glacial maximum. Most aDNA were assigned to non-fossilized taxa that also dominate in molecular studies of modern environments. Our study reveals the potential of aDNA to better document the evolution of past marine ecosystems and opens new horizons for the development of deep-sea palaeogenomics.

A stable and hot Turonian without glacial δ18O excursions is indicated by exquisitely preserved Tanzanian foraminifera

Abstract: A shift from the icehouse climate in which humans evolved to a Late Cretaceous–like greenhouse climate is an often-repeated cautionary prediction of the consequences of continued anthropogenic CO 2 emissions. The corollary, that understanding the past might help predict the future, has justified many Late Cretaceous studies, but important questions remain about climate stability and sensitivity. New δ 18 O measurements of more than 1000 samples of exceptionally well preserved foraminifera (8 planktic and 11 benthic taxa) from two sites in Tanzania indicate that hot and remarkably stable conditions prevailed in the region during the Turonian, including during a proposed greenhouse glacial event. Planktic taxa have δ 18 O values largely between –4.0‰ and –5.0‰, suggesting surface-water temperatures between 30 and 35 °C. Estimates for seafloor temperatures are between 18 and 25 °C. No parallel shifts in δ 18 O values are observed among planktic and benthic taxa, contradicting an often-cited line of evidence for greenhouse glaciations and supporting an effectively ice-free Turonian world.

Cenozoic deep-sea circulation: evidence from deep- sea benthic foraminifera

Abstract: Deep-sea benthic foraminiferal faunas reflect the deep oceanic environment, the character of which is determined by interaction of deepwater circulation patterns, physicochemical parameters of the surface waters in the deepwater source areas, and nutrient influx from primary productivity in overlying surface waters. Three periods of turnover in deep-sea benthic foraminiferal assemblages can be recognized in Cenozoic sequences: (1) rapid (<10 4 yr), global extinction in the latest Paleocene, followed by migration and diversification; (2) gradual turnover in the late middle Eocene through early Oligocene, characterized by a decrease in diversity, a decrease in relative abundance of Nuttallides truempyi followed by its extinction, and a decreasing relative abundance or disappearance of Bulimina species in the lower bathyal to upper abyssal zones; and (3) gradual turnover in the late early through middle Miocene, characterized by the decrease in relative abundance or disappearance of uniserial species from the lower bathyal to abyssal reaches, the migration of miliolid species into these regions, and the evolution of Cibicidoides wuellerstorfi. The rapid mass extinction (35-50% of species) of deep-sea benthic foraminifera in the latest Paleocene was coeval with a transient 1-2%o decrease in oxygen and carbon isotope ratios in benthic as well as planktonic foraminifera, superimposed on longer-term changes. The extinction could have resulted from a shift in dominant deepwater formation from high to low latitudes. Such a shift would change temperature and oxygen content of the intermediate to deep waters, but it would also change local nutrient input by changing global patterns of upwelling of nutrient-rich waters to the surface and thus of high-productivity areas. Faunal evidence suggests that this "reversed" pattern of oceanic circulation persisted no longer than the early Eocene, and possibly not more than about half a million years. The two periods of gradual benthic faunal changes overlap in time with two relatively rapid (of the order of 105 years) shifts toward heavier oxygen isotopic values of benthic foraminifera, in the earliest Oligocene and middle Miocene. Faunal changes started before the isotopic changes and were more gradual. The faunal changes might reflect periods of gradual change in the physicochemical character of surface waters in the source areas of deepwater formation (e.g., decrease in temperature), as well as changes in oceanic productivity. The more rapid changes in oxygen isotopic values are not directly reflected in benthic foraminiferal assemblage changes and might represent, at least in part, a rapid buildup of ice volume on land, a process that cannot be reflected in the benthic foraminifera faunas.

High risk of extinction of benthic foraminifera in this century due to ocean acidification

Abstract: Increased atmospheric CO2 concentrations lead to decreased pH and carbonate availability in the ocean (Ocean Acidification, OA). Carbon dioxide seeps serve as ‘windows into the future’ to study the ability of marine invertebrates to acclimatise to OA. We studied benthic foraminifera in sediments from shallow volcanic CO2 seeps in Papua New Guinea. Conditions follow a gradient from present day pH/pCO2 to those expected past 2100. We show that foraminiferal densities and diversity declined steeply with increasing pCO2. Foraminifera were almost absent at sites with pH 700 μatm pCO2). Symbiont-bearing species did not exhibit reduced vulnerability to extinction at <7.9 pH. Non-calcifying taxa declined less steeply along pCO2 gradients, but were also absent in samples at pH < 7.9. Data suggest the possibility of an OA induced ecological extinction of shallow tropical benthic foraminifera by 2100; similar to extinctions observed in the geological past.

Paleoenvironmental evolution of the East Carpathian foredeep during the late Miocene–early Pliocene (Dacian Basin; Romania)

Abstract: The thick and continuous Mio-Pliocene sedimentary successions of the Focsani Depression in the DacianBasin of Romania provide an excellent opportunity to study the paleoecological changes in the Eastern Paratethys during the time when the Mediterranean and Black Sea experienced major sea level fluctuations related to the closure and re-opening of the marine connection to the Atlantic Ocean during the Messinian Salinity Crisis. These successions form the basis of high-resolution magneto-biostratigraphic studies that allow a detailed correlation to the standard Geological Time Scale. Here, we analyze the paleoenvironmentalevolution of the EastCarpathianforedeep by integrating micro- and macropaleontological data and sedimentological analyses. The ostracod and mollusc fossil associations from the Râmnicu Sarat river section indicate that the late Maeotian depositional environment was characterized by shallow waters and littoral to fluvio-deltaic sediments. The Maeotian–Pontian boundary (6.04 Ma) is marked by a marine ingression, comprising benthic (agglutinated and calcareous) and planktonic (Streptochilus spp.) foraminifera and nanofossils. Following this marine ingression, the Lower Pontian (Odessian; 6.04–5.8 Ma) fauna shows an increased bathymetry of the basin. The presence of ostracod species with eye tubercles indicates depositional environments within the photic zone (< 100 m). The Middle Pontian (Portaferrian; 5.8–5.5 Ma) is marked by a widespread sea level lowering resulting in dominant fluvio-deltaic conditions. This ecostratigraphy demonstrates that the main Messinian sea-level draw down (at 5.6–5.5 Ma) occurred in mid-Portaferrian times. Paleoenvironmental indicators show that the water level in the Focsani Depression dropped less than 100 m during Mediterranean desiccation. The DacianBasin remained filled with water, suggesting a positive hydrological balance for the region. This is compatible with the presence of a shallow barrier at Dobrogea (the Galati passage), separating the DacianBasin from the Black Sea Basin during the lateMiocene. The Portaferrian–Bosphorian boundary (5.5 Ma) is marked by a second transgressive event, but this time without marine foraminifera. We conclude that the DacianBasin formed a semi-isolated entity during the Portaferrian and experienced connectivity to the Black Sea domain during the Odessian and Bosphorian

High risk of extinction of benthic foraminifera in this century due to ocean

Abstract: Increased atmospheric CO2 concentrations lead to decreased pH and carbonate availability in the ocean (Ocean Acidification, OA). Carbon dioxide seeps serve as ‘windows into the future’ to study the ability of marine invertebrates to acclimatise to OA. We studied benthic foraminifera in sediments from shallow volcanic CO2 seeps in Papua New Guinea. Conditions follow a gradient from present day pH/pCO2 to those expected past 2100. We show that foraminiferal densities and diversity declined steeply with increasing pCO2. Foraminifera were almost absent at sites with pH , 7.9 (.700 matm pCO2). Symbiont-bearing species did not exhibit reduced vulnerability to extinction at ,7.9 pH. Non-calcifying taxa declined less steeply along pCO2 gradients, but were also absent in samples at pH , 7.9. Data suggest the possibility of an OA induced ecological extinction of shallow tropical benthic foraminifera by 2100; similar to extinctions observed in the geological past.

Paleohydrology reconstruction and Holocene climate variability in the South Adriatic Sea

Abstract: . Holocene paleohydrology reconstruction is derived combining planktonic and benthic stable oxygen and carbon isotopes, sea surface temperatures (SSTs) and oxygen isotope composition of seawater (δ18Ow) from a high sedimentation core collected in the South Adriatic Sea (SAS). Core chronology is based on 10 AMS 14C measures on planktonic foraminifera and tephra layers. Results reveal two contrasted paleohydrological periods that reflect (i) a marked lowering of δ18Ow/salinity during the early to mid-Holocene (11.5 ka to 6.3 ka), including the two-step sapropel S1 deposition, followed during the mid- to upper Holocene by (ii) a prevailing period of increased salinity and enhanced arid conditions in the South Adriatic Basin. Superimposed on these trends, short-term centennial-scale hydrological events punctuated the Holocene period in the SAS. During the early to mid-Holocene, two main SST coolings together with prominent δ18Ow/salinity lowering delineate the sapropel S1 interruption and the post-sapropel phase between 7.3 to 6.3 ka. After 6 ka, centennial-scale δ18Ow and G. bulloides δ13C lowering, mostly centered between 3 to 0.6 ka, reflect short-term hydrological changes related to more intensive runoff of the Po and/or Apennine rivers. These short-term events, even of lesser amplitude compared to the early to mid-Holocene period, may have induced a lowering of sea surface density and consequently reduced and/or inhibited the formation of deep bottom waters in the SAS. Comparison of the emerging centennial- to millennial-scale hydrological record with previous climatic records from the central Mediterranean area and north of the Alps reveal possible synchronicities (within the radiocarbon-dating uncertainty) between phases of lower salinity in the SAS and periods of wetter climatic conditions around the north-central Adriatic Sea. Finally, wavelet analyses provide new clues about the potential origin of climate variability in the SAS, confirming the evidence for a mid-Holocene transition in the central Mediterranean climate and the dominance of a ~1670-yr periodicity after 6 ka, reflecting a plausible connection with the North Atlantic climate system.

Sources, transport and deposition of surface sediments from the South China Sea

Abstract: Sediment sources, transport and deposition in the South China Sea (SCS) are addressed based on multiple proxies of 111 surface sediment samples, including clay minerals and rare earth elements. Results reveal that sediment sources in the SCS generally contain volcanic, biogenic and terrigenous materials. Volcanic material is typically distributed west of Luzon Island (including adjacent to Huangyan Island). Carbonate biogenic materials (e.g., coral and foraminifera) develop strongly around the Nansha and Xisha Islands. Terrigenous materials mainly derive from the continent via large rivers (e.g., the Pearl, Red and Mekong Rivers) and from islands via mountainous rivers (e.g. the Gaoping River in Southwest Taiwan and Rajang River in northern Kalimantan). According to clay mineral distributions of surface sediments from the SCS, the sediment transport route is traced. It extends to the central basin and even connects with the Sulu Sea through the Mindoro Strait. Further, based on rare earth element (REE) distribution patterns of the fine-grained fraction and clay mineral assemblage of surface sediments, contributions of various sediment sources are estimated at various locations on the SCS slope. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of ocean acidification on the benthic foraminifera Ammonia sp. is caused by a decrease in carbonate ion concentration

Abstract: About 30% of the anthropogenically released CO 2 is taken up by the oceans; such uptake causes surface ocean pH to decrease and is commonly referred to as ocean acidification (OA). Foraminifera are one of the most abundant groups of marine calcifiers, estimated to precipitate ca. 50 % of biogenic calcium carbonate in the open oceans. We have compiled the state of the art literature on OA effects on foraminifera, because the majority of OA research on this group was published within the last three years. Disparate responses of this important group of marine calcifiers to OA were reported, highlighting the importance of a process-based understanding of OA effects on foraminifera. We cultured the benthic foraminifer Ammonia sp. under a range of carbonate chemistry manipulation treatments to identify the parameter of the carbonate system causing the observed effects. This parameter identification is the first step towards a process-based understanding. We argue that [CO 3 2− ] is the parameter affecting foraminiferal size-normalized weights (SNWs) and growth rates. Based on the presented data, we can confirm the strong potential of Ammonia sp. foraminiferal SNW as a [CO 3 2− ] proxy.

Foraminiferal survival after long-term in situ experimentally induced anoxia

Abstract: Anoxia was successfully induced in four benthic chambers installed at 24 m depth on the northern Adriatic seafloor from 9 days to 10 months. To accurately determine whether benthic foraminifera can survive experimentally induced prolonged anoxia, the CellTracker TM Green method was applied and calcareous and agglutinated foraminifera were analyzed. Numerous individuals were found living at all sampling times and at all sampling depths (to 5 cm), supported by a ribosomal RNA analysis that revealed that certain benthic foraminifera were active after 10 months of anoxia. The results show that benthic foraminifera can survive up to 10 months of anoxia with co-occurring hydrogen sulfides. However, foraminiferal standing stocks decrease with sampling time in an irregular manner. A large difference in standing stock between two cores sampled under initial conditions indicates the presence of a large spatial heterogeneity of the foraminiferal faunas. An unexpected increase in standing stocks after one month is tentatively interpreted as a reaction to increased food availability due to the massive mortality of infaunal macrofaunal organisms. After this, standing stocks decrease again in cores sampled after 2 months of anoxia to then attain a minimum in the cores sampled after 10 months. We speculate that the trend of overall decrease of standing stocks is not due to the adverse effects of anoxia and hydrogen sulfides but rather due to a continuous diminution of labile organic matter.

Testing the impact of diagenesis on the δ18O and δ13C of benthic foraminiferal calcite from a sediment burial depth transect in the equatorial Pacific

Abstract: Stable oxygen and carbon isotope (δ18O and δ13C) values measured in foraminiferal calcite are one of the primary tools used in paleoceanography. Diagenetic recrystallisation of foraminiferal calcite can act to reset primary isotopic values but its effects are typically poorly quantified. Here we test the impact of early stage diagenesis on stable isotope records generated from a suite of drill sites in the equatorial Pacific Ocean recovered during Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Leg 199 and Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Expedition 320. Our selected sites form paleowater- and burial-depth transects, with excellent stratigraphic control allowing us to confidently correlate our records. We observe large inter-site differences in the preservation state of benthic foraminiferal calcite, implying very different recrystallisation histories, but negligible inter-site offsets in benthic δ18O and δ13C values. We infer that diagenetic alteration of benthic foraminiferal calcite (in sedimentary oozes) must predominantly occur at shallow burial depths (<100 m) where offsets in both the temperature and isotopic composition of waters in which the foraminifera calcified and pore-waters in which diagenesis occurs are small. Our results suggest that even extensive recrystallisation of benthic foraminiferal calcite results in minimal shifts from primary δ18O and δ13C values. This finding supports the long-held suspicion that diagenetic alteration of foraminiferal calcite is less problematic in benthic than in planktic foraminifera and that in deep–sea sediments routinely employed for palaeoceanographic studies benthic foraminifera are robust recorders of stable isotope values in the fossil record.

Deep-Sea Benthic Foraminifera

Abstract: Foraminifera are immensely successful and diverse components of deep-sea benthic communities, encompassing an extraordinary range of morphotypes and ecological traits. Bathymetric and geographic distributions are strongly influenced by organic-matter fluxes and carbonate dissolution. Species occupying different microhabitats within the sediment exhibit different ecological characteristics. Shallow-infaunal species are often active in processing labile organic matter and show seasonal population fluctuations; deeper infaunal species are less responsive and have more stable populations. Some foraminifera are highly tolerant of hypoxia, exhibiting ultrastructural and physiological adaptations to these stressful conditions, including the ability to respire nitrate. The structure and composition of fossil foraminiferal assemblages, and geochemical signals preserved in their calcareous shells, provide important proxies for reconstructing ancient oceans, particularly during the Late Cenozoic.

The role of benthic foraminifera in the benthic nitrogen cycle of the Peruvian oxygen minimum zone

Abstract: The discovery that foraminifera are able to use nitrate instead of oxygen as energy source for their metabolism has challenged our understanding of nitrogen cycling in the ocean. It was evident before that only prokaryotes and fungi are able to denitrify. Rate 5 estimates of foraminiferal denitrification were very sparse on a regional scale. Here, we present estimates of benthic foraminiferal denitrification rates from six stations at intermediate water depths in and below the Peruvian oxygen minimum zone (OMZ). Foraminiferal denitrification rates were calculated from abundance and assemblage composition of the total living fauna in both, surface and subsurface sediments, 10 as well as from individual species specific denitrification rates. A comparison with total benthic denitrification rates as inferred by biogeochemical models revealed that benthic foraminifera account for the total denitrification on the shelf between 80 and 250m water depth. They are still important denitrifiers in the centre of the OMZ around 320m (29–56% of the benthic denitrification) but play only a minor role at the lower OMZ 15 boundary and below the OMZ between 465 and 700m (3–7% of total benthic denitrification). Furthermore, foraminiferal denitrification was compared to the total benthic nitrate loss measured during benthic chamber experiments. Foraminiferal denitrification contributes 1 to 50% to the total nitrate loss across a depth transect from 80 to 700 m, respectively. Flux rate estimates ranged from 0.01 to 1.3 mmolm−2 d−1. Fur20 thermore we show that the amount of nitrate stored in living benthic foraminifera (3 to 705 μmolL−1) can be higher by three orders of magnitude as compared to the ambient pore waters in near surface sediments sustaining an important nitrate reservoir in Peruvian OMZ sediments. The substantial contribution of foraminiferal nitrate respiration to total benthic nitrate loss at the Peruvian margin, which is one of the main nitrate sink 25 regions in the world oceans, underpins the importance of previously underestimated role of benthic foraminifera in global biochemical cycles.

Evolution of the Paleocene-Early Eocene larger benthic foraminifera in the Tethyan Himalaya of Tibet, China

Abstract: The Paleocene-Early Eocene larger benthic foraminifera (LBF) in the far eastern Neo-Tethyan Ocean of Tibet still remain poorly known. Here, we present a novel, high-resolution larger foraminiferal biozonation from the shallow-water limestones in Tibet, which will improve our current understanding of the larger foraminiferal evolution in the eastern Neo-Tethyan Ocean. Based on one continuous section at Tingri and three separate sections at Gamba, ten Shallow Benthic Zones (SBZ 1–10) have been designated in Tibet by following the principle of Oppel Zone. In contrast to those in Europe, the Paleocene LBFs in Tibet are characterized by high diversification of Lockhartia, Kathina, Daviesina, Miscellanea, Ranikothalia, and Operculina and show progressively increasing diversity of genera and species during SBZ 2–5. Adult dimorphism and large shell size of some LBFs as well as differentiation of the diversity between genera and species initiated as early as SBZ 3. It suggests that the occurrence of the Larger Foraminifera Turnover (LFT) was probably not synchronous in the entire Neo-Tethyan Ocean, because in Europe, the LFT was generally thought to occur at the beginning of SBZ 5. During the Early Eocene, the LBFs in Tibet decreased markedly on the generic level and increased on the species level, and some new genera (Alveolina, Orbitolites, Nummulites, Assilina, Discocyclina) have gained predominance in Tibet. It is nearly identical to the evolution of the LBFs in Europe and indicates a high-degree homogenization of the LBFs in the entire Neo-Tethyan Ocean. Furthermore, the Paleocene-Eocene (P-E) boundary in shallow-water environments has been clearly identified by us, and it is situated in the upper part of SBZ 5 and associated with no evident biotic turnover of shallow benthic foraminiferal communities. The possible diachroneity of the LFT in the Neo-Tethyan Ocean and the evident lagging of the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) behind the LFT imply that the LFT could only be the result of a natural evolutionary process and has no linkage with the PETM. Notably, a transient but distinct larger foraminiferal extinction and origination (LFEO) event has been found in Tibet, which is characterized by a sudden disappearance of all Paleocene lamellar-perforate LBFs, such as Lockhartia, Kathina, Daviesina, Miscellanea, Ranikothalia, and Operculina, and the initial dominance of the Early Eocene porcellaneous-walled Alveolina. The LFEO marks the boundary between SBZ 5 and 6, and might only occur in the low-latitude areas of the Neo-Tethyan Ocean. Surprisingly, the LFEO coincides with the initial recovery of the Carbon Isotope Excursion (CIE), and their synchronicity implies that some possible mechanisms causing the rapid recovery of the CIE probably had also led to the LFEO in the shallow-water environments.

Symbiont 'bleaching' in planktic foraminifera during the Middle Eocene Climatic Optimum

Abstract: Many genera of modern planktic foraminifera are adapted to nutrient-poor (oligotrophic) surface waters by hosting photosynthetic symbionts, but it is unknown how they will respond to future changes in ocean temperature and acidity. Here we show that ca. 40 Ma, some fossil photosymbiont-bearing planktic foraminifera were temporarily 'bleached' of their symbionts coincident with transient global warming during the Middle Eocene Climatic Optimum (MECO). At Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Sites 748 and 1051 (Southern Ocean and mid-latitude North Atlantic, respectively), the typically positive relationship between the size of photosymbiont-bearing planktic foraminifer tests and their carbon isotope ratios (δ13C) was temporarily reduced for ∼100 k.y. during the peak of the MECO. At the same time, the typically photosymbiont-bearing planktic foraminifera Acarinina suffered transient reductions in test size and relative abundance, indicating ecological stress. The coincidence of minimum δ18O values and reduction in test size–δ13C gradients suggests a link between increased sea-surface temperatures and bleaching during the MECO, although changes in pH and nutrient availability may also have played a role. Our findings show that host-photosymbiont interactions are not constant through geological time, with implications for both the evolution of trophic strategies in marine plankton and the reliability of geochemical proxy records generated from symbiont-bearing planktic foraminifera.

Quantified intermediate water oxygenation history of the NE Pacific: A new benthic foraminiferal record from Santa Barbara basin

Abstract: The oxygen minimum zone (OMZ) of the late Quaternary California margin experienced abrupt and dramatic changes in strength and depth in response to changes in intermediate water ventilation, ocean productivity, and climate at orbital through millennial time scales. Expansion and contraction of the OMZ is exhibited at high temporal resolution (107-126 year) by quantitative benthic foraminiferal assemblage changes in two piston cores forming a vertical profile in Santa Barbara Basin (569 m, basin floor; 481 m, near sill depth) to 34 and 24 ka, respectively. Variation in the OMZ is quantified by new benthic foraminiferal groupings and new dissolved oxygen index based on documented relations between species and water-mass oxygen concentrations. Foraminiferal-based paleoenvironmental assessments are integrated with principal component analysis, bioturbation, grain size, CaCO3, total organic carbon, and C-13 to reconstruct basin oxygenation history. Fauna responded similarly between the two sites, although with somewhat different magnitude and taxonomic expression. During cool episodes (Younger Dryas and stadials), the water column was well oxygenated, most strongly near the end of the glacial episode (17-16 ka; Heinrich 1). In contrast, the OMZ was strong during warm episodes (BOlling/AllerOd, interstadials, and Pre-Boreal). During the BOlling/AllerOd, the OMZ shoaled to <360 m of contemporaneous sea level, its greatest vertical expansion of the last glacial cycle. Assemblages were then dominated by Bolivina tumida, reflecting high concentrations of dissolved methane in bottom waters. Short decadal intervals were so severely oxygen-depleted that no benthic foraminifera were present. The middle to late Holocene (6-0 ka) was less dysoxic than the early Holocene.

Mg/Ca and Mn/Ca ratios in benthic foraminifera: the potential to reconstruct past variations in temperature and hypoxia in shelf regions

Abstract: . Shelf and coastal regions are exceptionally important for many countries as they provide the main habitat for many economically important fish and shellfish species. With ongoing climate change and human-induced eutrophication the shelf regions are especially affected, resulting in increased temperatures and stratification as well as oxygen depletion of the bottom waters. In order to be able to predict the magnitude of these changes in the future, it is necessary to study how they varied in the past. Commonly used foraminiferal climate and environmental proxies, e.g., stable isotopes and trace metal/Ca ratios, that are applied in open-ocean settings are not necessarily applicable in shelf regions, either as faunas are significantly different or as conditions can change much faster compared to the open ocean. In this study we explore the use of Mg/Ca as paleothermometer and Mn/Ca as a potential proxy for changing dissolved oxygen conditions in bottom water on the benthic foraminifera Bulimina marginata and Globobulimina turgida. Living specimens were collected from the Skagerrak and the Gullmar Fjord (SW Sweden); the latter is hypoxic for several months a year. As the specimens were alive when collected, we assume it unlikely that any diagenetic coatings have already significantly affected the trace metal/Ca ratios. The Mg/Ca ratios are similar to previously published values but display much larger variation than would be expected from the annual temperature change of less than 2 °C. An additional impact of the difference in the calcite saturation state between the Skagerrak and the Gullmar Fjord could explain the results. Mn/Ca ratios from G. turgida can potentially be related to variations in dissolved oxygen of the habitat where the foraminifera calcify. Samples from the Skagerrak display increased Mn/Ca in specimens that lived deeper in the sediment than those that lived near the surface. G. turgida samples from the low-oxygen Gullmar Fjord showed significantly increased Mn/Ca, being highest when bottom water dissolved oxygen was at a minimum. Our study suggests that trace metal/Ca ratios in benthic foraminifera from shelf regions have the potential to record past variations in bottom water temperature and dissolved oxygen concentrations, but an additional impact of the inorganic carbonate chemistry cannot be excluded.

Timing of the oceanographic and biological isolation of the Caribbean Sea from the tropical eastern Pacific Ocean

Abstract: Geological uplift along the Central American Arc began in the Eocene with extensive development of emergent terrains by the early Miocene. Nevertheless, three independent lines of evidence are consistent with abundant seawater exchange between the oceans until about 4.7-3 Ma. (1) Isotopic and sedimentary data from ocean cores demonstrate that divergence in surface salinity and deep-sea carbonate accumulation between the Caribbean and eastern Pacific did not occur until 4.7-4.2 Ma. Moreover, strong upwelling comparable to the Pacific today persisted in Caribbean shelf environments until 4.5-3.5 Ma. (2) North and South American terrestrial mammals and tropical forest bird faunas remained overwhelmingly isolated until about 3 Ma. Some birds flew across the seaway and numerous small amphibians and plants began mixing millions of years earlier as expected due to their high probability of rafting. The rarity and ambiguity of reported exceptions to these result after a century of intensive sampling strengthen the general pattern. (3) Bathyal foraminifera first separated across the developing Isthmus approximately 13 Ma but numerous mollusks and cheilostomes are known from both oceans until the Middle Pliocene. Some species now restricted to the Pacific persisted in the Caribbean until the Pleistocene, but no species known to have originated after the Early Pliocene occurs in both oceans except for dispersal by shorebirds or human introductions. Molecular clock estimates for the timing of divergence of taxa strongly support these patterns. Isolation of the Caribbean from the Pacific about 3 Ma provides a robust model system for the study of vicariance in the oceans.