Fig 1 - uploaded by Brent Wilson
Content may be subject to copyright.
(a) The northern Lesser Antilles, showing the location of Nevis. Inset: the Eastern Caribbean, indicating Nevis at the northern end of the Lesser Antilles island arc. (b) Nevis, showing the sample sites at Long Haul Bay (LHB) and Mosquito Bay (MB).
Source publication
The taxocene of live epiphytal foraminifera was for one year monitored monthly on six phytal substrates in shallow water (<1 m) in two bays around Nevis, NE Caribbean Sea. Mosquito Bay was subject to a nutrient flux from a leaking septic tank. Long Haul Bay was comparatively undeveloped. SHE Community Structure Investigations (SHECSIs) revealed tha...
Context in source publication
Context 1
... dataset used herein was first reported by Wilson (2000), who examined shallow-water (<1 m) epiphytal foraminifera communities in two embayments around the island of Nevis, northern Lesser Antilles (17(10#N, 62(35#W, Fig. 1), monitor- ing populations monthly for twelve months to produce time- series for populations on various plants. From Long Haul Bay (LHB, Fig. 2), a backreef bay on the northeast, windward coast, Wilson (2000) sampled populations on P. capitatus capitulae (heads), T. testinudum leaves and T. testinudum rhizomes and leaf bosses. From ...
Similar publications
The CARICOMP monitoring network gathered standardized data from 52 seagrass sampling stations at 22 sites (mostly Thalassia testudinum-dominated beds in reef systems) across the Wider Caribbean twice a year over the period 1993 to 2007 (and in some cases up to 2012). Wide variations in community total biomass (285 to .2000 g dry m 22) and annual fo...
The spatial distribution of seagrass beds depends on environmental factors such as light, temperature, salinity, substrate type, and nutrient availability. There is an extensive area of seagrass beds dominated by Thalassia testudinum along the shallow continental shelf of La Guajira, representing more than 80 % of the seagrass beds in Colombia. In...
Seagrass communities in tropical reef systems are situated in a distinct environmental setting than other seagrass beds around the world: they are exposed to high light intensities and low nutrient concentrations in carbonate sediments. Little is known about the forces which determine the community dynamics in these systems. Here we review studies...
Seagrass meadows are important sites for carbon storage. Green turtles (Chelonia mydas) are marine megaherbivores that consume seagrass throughout much of their global range. With successful conservation efforts, turtle abundance will increase, leading to more meadows being returned to their natural grazed state. There is concern this may lead to a...
Turtlegrass Thalassia testudinum meadows from 0.5 m and 2.0 m depths were studied in the Florida Keys and W Caribbean. Two meadows, one offshore of a populated island with over 2000 septic tanks, and one offshore of a large bird rookery, were similar in having elevated levels of water column nutrients, greater epiphyte levels, low shoot densities,...
Citations
... While foraminifera are extremely abundant in coastal areas, and are considered to be good bioindicators of environmental impact, sediment dynamics, and paleoenvironmental reconstitution (Scott et al., 2001;Murray, 2006;Boudagher-Fadel, 2018;Bérgamo et al., 2022), most ecological studies of benthic foraminifera have focused on sedimentdwelling species (Murray, 2006). By contrast, data on epiphytic foraminifera are still extremely scant, and while intensive research has been conducted on modern foraminifera for more than a century, the epiphytic communities that inhabit macroalgae have largely been overlooked, in particular in the tropics (Wilson, 2008;Debenay and Payri, 2010). Up to now, few studies in Brazil have focused on phytal foraminifera, since most studies have characterized foraminifera assemblages in the unconsolidated sediments from the continental margin (e.g. ...
... The protocol for the analysis of the phytal foraminifera was developed based on a review of the literature about foraminifera in shallow water Langer, 1993;Richardson, 2000;Wilson, 2008;Debenay and Payri, 2010;Manda et al., 2020;Solís-Díaz et al., 2022). The methods proposed in these articles were adapted to allow the study of foraminifera attached to macroalgae and in the sediments accumulated in macroalgae. ...
While they are extremely abundant and ecologically important, the epiphytic foraminifera of tropical reefs are still poorly known. The present study describes the foraminiferal assemblages associated with macroalgae on tropical reefs of the Brazilian coast. Samples of four species of macroalgae, two foliose (Padina antillarum and Ulva lactuca) and two corticated (Palisada perforata and Gelidiella acerosa), were collected from intertidal sandstone reefs at Pina, Enseada dos Corais, and Toquinho (Northeastern Brazil). Overall, only 13.3% of the 708,754 foraminifera specimens were alive, belonging to 37 species, with dominance of Rosalina anglica. Most tests were hyaline-perforate and conical in shape, and most species were permanently or temporarily sessile. The majority of living foraminifera were attached to the surface of Palisada and Gelidiella, and no attached specimens were found in either Padina or Ulva. The species richness and abundance of the living foraminifera varied significantly among the macroalgae, occurring the high values in P. perforata. The assemblages varied significantly between the two species of corticated macroalgae, and between the corticated and foliose species, but not between the two foliose algae. Some of the specimens of Glabratella and Rosalina were reproducing, and had juveniles attached to the parental test. This is the first study to focus on the ecological interactions of the epiphytic foraminifera of the tropical southern Atlantic Ocean, and its results indicate that the characteristics of the epiphytic assemblages can be used as a proxy for the understanding of the structure and function of microbenthic communities on tropical reefs.
... Both foraminifers and associated macroalgae are useful ecological bioindicators for a wide range of naturally-occurring and anthropogenically-induced environmental perturbations (e.g., Chalkley et al., 2019;Dimiza et al., 2019;Makri et al., 2020Makri et al., , 2022. Numerous studies of epiphytic foraminifers have described foraminiferal-seagrass associations (e.g., Semeniuk, 2000Semeniuk, , 2001Wilson & Ramsook, 2007) and sometimes both seagrasses and macroalgae (e.g., Mateu-Vicens et al., 2010;Wilson, 2008), but less attention has been paid to the foraminiferal-macroalgal relationship (Langer, 1988(Langer, , 1993. Recently in the Mediterranean Sea, Manda et al. (2020) studied epiphytic foraminiferal preferences for macroalgal habitats. ...
Since their earliest history, benthic foraminifers have diversified to inhabit a vast array of habitats, from semi-terrestrial to the deep-sea floor. Epiphytic foraminifers developed morphologies that have allowed them to inhabit macroalgal fronds and thalli. This study examined the presence of benthic foraminiferal species living on algal species inhabiting rocky coastal environments in the southeastern Mediterranean Sea. Fronds of six algal taxa found abundantly on a carbonate wave-cut platform off the east coast of Alexandria were collected and the associated foraminifers living on each frond were identified. Twenty foraminiferal species were recorded, with seven epiphytic species (Asterigerinata mamilla, Elphidium aculeatum, Elphidium crispum, Peneroplis pertusus, Peneroplis planatus, Rosalina bradyi, and Rosalina macro-pora) comprising > 80% of the assemblage. Nearly 70% of the foraminiferal specimens were found on two algal species, Caulerpa racemosa and Ellisolandia elongata. Two Indo-Pacific foraminiferal species found in the samples (Amphistegina lobifera and Amphisorus hemprichii), in addition to Caulerpa racemosa, are considered invasive species in the Mediterranean. The widespread occurrence of the opportunistic invasive Caulerpa spp., which apparently provides suitable habitat for many epiphytic foraminifers, may partially compensate for the predicted decline in coralline-algal habitat under the effect of ocean acidification.
... Four foraminiferal assemblages were identified: (i) a Homotrema assemblage at the windward platform margin, (ii) an Archaias-Homotrema assemblage on the leeward margin and on platform interior coral patch reefs, (iii) a Quinqueloculina-Archaias-Rosalina assemblage on the western platform, and (iv) an Archaias-Quinqueloculina assemblage on the eastern platform interior. Environmental factors influencing foraminiferal distributions and diversity on Banco Chinchorro platform include wave and current exposure, and plant and algal growth, many of the taxa being epiphytal (Wilson, 2008). Sediment transport does not play a major role in Banco Chinchorro platform, few taxa being found outside their typical habitats. ...
A preliminary study of the composition and community structure of the foraminifera of Chichiriviche de La Costa (Vargas, Venezuela) is presented. A total of 105 species were found in samples from 10 to 40 meter-depth, and their abundance quantified in a carbonate prone area almost pristine in environmental conditions. The general composition varies in all the samples: at 10 m, Miliolida dominates the assemblages but, as it gets deeper, Rotaliida takes control of the general composition. The Shannon Wiener diversity index follows species richness along the depth profile, meanwhile the FORAM index has a higher value at 20 m and its lowest at 40 m. Variations in the P/(P+B) ratio and high number of rare species are documented and a correspondence multivariate analysis was performed in order to visualize the general community structure. These results could set some basic information that will be useful for management programs associated with the coral reef in Chichiriviche de La Costa, which is the principal focus for diver’s schools and tourism and could help the local communities to a better understanding of their ecosystem values at this location at Vargas State, Venezuela. Keywords: Miliolida, Rotaliida, foraminiferal assemblages, FORAM index, Caribbean continental shelf.
... A number of studies have successfully identified the community structure for Recent benthic foraminifera (e.g., Buzas & Hayek, 1996, 1998Murray, 2003;Wilson, 2008a). Studies have also established the community structure for 1 Department of Paleobiology, Smithsonian Institution, NHB Mrc-121, Washington, D. C. 20560 2 Mathematics & Statistics, Smithsonian Institution, NHB MRC-121, Washington, D. C. 20560 * Correspondence author. ...
The ecological balance of nature is defined as an equilibrium between species richness (S) and species evenness (E) such that diversity (H) remains constant with time. Based on this definition, our approach identifies growth or decline in communities as perturbations from stasis and has successfully done so for benthic foraminiferal communities. Here, we examine whether this approach is appropriate for planktonic foraminifera. To do so, we utilized planktonic foraminiferal counts (39 samples, 66% recovery) from Maastrichtian sediments in the Weddell Sea from ODP Hole 690C. A total of 24 species were observed and both >63-µm and >150-µm fractions were counted. In the >63-µm fraction, nine communities were recognized while in the >150-µm fraction, there were 12. In both fractions at 70.45 Ma, a boundary was recognized and immediately after this boundary, a community in growth was identified. A trend of increasing diversity upcore was substantiated by regression on individual samples. For our purposes, the >150-µm fraction in this data set is sufficient to recognize community trends. The >150-µm fraction in Hole 690C has 82% of the sampling time in stasis and an average time per community is 0.85 Ma. The >63-µm fraction has 73% of the sampling time in stasis and an average time per community of 1.02 Ma.
... Consequently, the number of benthic foraminiferal taxa living in surface sediments is generally low (Wright, 1964;Murray, 1991;Morgan and Lewis, 2010). Instead, as more nutrients are available in the proximity of marine macrophytes (Murray, 1970), the majority of nearshore foraminifera in these environments have adopted an epiphytic life modus, living motile or permanently to temporarily attached to macrophyte substrates, i.e. leaves, exposed rhizomes, algae thalli and seagrasses (Cushman, 1922;Wright and Hay, 1971;Waszczak and Steinker, 1978;Langer, 1993;Alve, 1999;Wilson, 1998Wilson, , 2007Wilson, , 2008Wilson and Ramsock, 2007). Distinctive epiphytic foraminiferal communities develop on different macrophyte taxa (Langer, 1993;Fujita and Hallock, 1999;Ribes et al., 2000;Wilson, 2000Wilson, , 2008Fujita, 2004;Debenay and Payri, 2010) ing tests of dead foraminifera to accumulate in the sediment (Steinker and Clem, 1984;Darroch, 2012). ...
... Instead, as more nutrients are available in the proximity of marine macrophytes (Murray, 1970), the majority of nearshore foraminifera in these environments have adopted an epiphytic life modus, living motile or permanently to temporarily attached to macrophyte substrates, i.e. leaves, exposed rhizomes, algae thalli and seagrasses (Cushman, 1922;Wright and Hay, 1971;Waszczak and Steinker, 1978;Langer, 1993;Alve, 1999;Wilson, 1998Wilson, , 2007Wilson, , 2008Wilson and Ramsock, 2007). Distinctive epiphytic foraminiferal communities develop on different macrophyte taxa (Langer, 1993;Fujita and Hallock, 1999;Ribes et al., 2000;Wilson, 2000Wilson, , 2008Fujita, 2004;Debenay and Payri, 2010) ing tests of dead foraminifera to accumulate in the sediment (Steinker and Clem, 1984;Darroch, 2012). ...
... The number of living foraminifera on the macrophytes is overall low compared to some earlier studies (e.g. Wilson, 2008), but similar in magnitude to those found in other investigations (e.g. Wilson, 1989). ...
Benthic foraminiferal populations were studied in a shallow bay of San Salvador
Island, the Bahamas. Surface sediments and marine macrophytes were collected
from 14 sample sites along a 500 m transect at Grahams Harbour to
investigate the foraminiferal assemblage in each microhabitat and to test the
link between dead foraminiferal test accumulation patterns and living
epiphytic and sedimentary foraminiferal assemblages, macrophyte distribution,
and environmental gradients. The analyses include grain size measurements,
macrophyte biomass quantification, and qualitative and quantitative
studies of benthic foraminifera. The foraminifera found attached to
macrophytes differed between macrophyte habitats. However, a correlation
between these living communities and the dead assemblages in the sediments at
the same sites could not be observed. Principal component analysis (PCA) and
redundancy analysis (RDA) suggest that the presence of the macroalgae
Halimeda explains 16 % of the residual faunal variation in the dead
foraminiferal assemblage after the effects of sorting according to fall speed
are
partialled out. The RDA also reflects a positive correlation between
foraminifera larger than 1.0 mm in diameter and the 0.25–0.5 mm sediment
grain size, indicating sedimentological processes as the main factor
controlling the sedimentary epiphytic foraminiferal assemblages. These
sedimentary processes overprint most effects of ecological features or
macrophyte-specific association.
... All these aforementioned groups are commonly reported as epiphytes living on seagrasses and macroalgae (e.g. Wright and Murray, 1972;Brasier, 1975;Eva, 1980;Reiss and Hottinger, 1984;Langer, 1993;Wilson, 1998Wilson, , 2008Fujita and Hallock, 1999;Langer and Hottinger, 2000;Richardson, 2000Richardson, , 2006Semeniuk, 2001;Saraswati, 2002;Mateu-Vicens et al., 2010), although they are not restricted to phytal substrates. Wilson (1998) observed that the encrusting acervulinid Gypsina squamiformis is the most abundant species living attached to the leaves of present-day seagrasses Thalassia testudinum and Syringodium filiforme in St. Kitts Island. ...
The recognition and understanding of vegetated habitats in the fossil record are of crucial importance in order to investigate paleoecological responses and indirectly infer climate and sea-level changes. However, the low preservation potential of plants and macroalgae hampers a direct identification of these environments in the geological past. Here we present sedimentological and paleontological evidences as tool to identify the presence of different seagrass-vegetated environments in the shallow marine settings of the lower Eocene Jafnayn platform of Oman and their responses to paleoenvironmental changes. The studied lower Eocene deposits consist of well bedded, nodular packstones dominated by encrusting acervulinid and alveolinid foraminifera passing upward to an alternance of packstones with echinoids and quartz grains and grainstones rich in Orbitolites, smaller miliolid foraminifera and quartz grains. The presence of seagrass is inferred by the occurrence of encrusting acervulinids and soritid Orbitolites, as well as by their test morphologies together with further sedimentological criteria. The clear shift observed in the faunal assemblages and sedimentary features may be related to a major reorganization of the carbonates system passing from a carbonate platform to a ramp-like platform with increased terrigenous sedimentation. Heterotroph tubular acervulinids and oligotroph alveolinids of the carbonate platform were replaced upward by more heterotroph organisms such as large, discoidal Orbitolites and smaller miliolids, most likely due to enhanced nutrient levels which would have led to a change of phytal substrate, from cylindrical-leaf dominated grasses into flat-leafed ones.
... Wilson (1998) found that Gypsina squamiformis was the most abundant species living attached to seagrass leaves of Thalassia and Syringodium. Wilson (2008) found that planorbulinids dominate the biocoenosis on seagrass leaves in Nevis (West Indies), but that they also occur in the thanatocoenosis in sediments outside the studied seagrass meadows. Furthermore, densities of Sorites sp. were reported as much higher on seagrass leaves compared to most other substrates (Kloos, 1984;Fujita and Hallock, 1999;Richardson, 2000;W. ...
Seagrass meadows are marine habitats with high ecological importance. Their detection in the fossil record will contribute to our understanding of the development of patterns of marine biodiversity through time and the response of coastal marine habitats to environmental change. Due to the low probability of fossilization of seagrass macrofossils, the reliable identification of seagrass meadows in the fossil record is often challenging. A wide range of indirect indicators has been applied to infer paleo-seagrass habitats in Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic deposits. The usefulness of those indicators is determined by various factors, such as their stratigraphic range, fossilization potential, habitat restriction, and others. Although they have sometimes been briefly summarized in the literature, a comprehensive review of indirect paleo-seagrass indicators, including an assessment of their value for recognition of this habitat, is not yet available. We summarize them here and explore their usefulness. We aim to assist future workers to identify facies and fossil assemblages associated with seagrass beds. Apart from a few truly diagnostic proxies, combinations of several indicators turn out to be most reliable when aiming to identify the presence of paleo-seagrass habitats. Presence/absence of many potentially seagrass-associated taxa cannot serve as a useful indicator due to a lack of habitat restriction, but statistical evaluations of abundance data are promising to discriminate seagrass beds from neighbouring areas. However, such studies are available for only a few commonly seagrass-associated organism groups. Furthermore, the applicability of many indicators is confined by latitude, because their occurrence is restricted to (sub)tropical or at most warm temperate regions.
... We are aware that our recommendations are based on experiences gained mainly in temperate to high northern latitudes. Environmental monitoring in tropical near-shore areas and coral reefs may require different techniques (Wilson, 1998(Wilson, , 2008Hallock et al., 2003). ...
The European Community Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) was established to provide guidelines for monitoring the quality of marine ecosystems. Monitoring the status of marine environments is traditionally based on macrofauna surveys, for which standardised methods have been established. Benthic foraminifera are also good indicators of environmental status because of their fast turnover rates, high degree of specialisation, and the preservation of dead assemblages in the fossil record. In spite of the growing interest in foraminiferal bio-monitoring during the last decades, no standardised methodology has been proposed until today. The aim of the FOraminiferal BIo-MOnitoring (FOBIMO) expert workshop, held in June 2011 at Fribourg, Switzerland, which assembled 37 scientists from 24 research groups and 13 countries, was to develop a suite of standard methods. This paper presents the main outcome of the workshop, a list of motivated recommendations with re-spect to sampling devices, sample storage, treatment, faunal analysis and documentation. Our recommendations fulfil the criteria imposed both by scientific rigour and by the practical limitations of routine studies. Hence, our aim is to standardise methodologies used in bio-monitoring only and not to limit the use of different methods in pure scientific studies. Unless otherwise stated, all recommendations concern living (stained) benthic foraminif-eral assemblages. We have chosen to propose two types of recommendations. Mandatory recommendations have to be followed if a study wants to qualify as sound and compatible to the norms. The most important of these rec-ommendations are the interval from 0 to 1 cm below the sediment surface has to be sampled, and an interface corer or box corer that keeps the sediment surface intact is to be used for offshore surveys. A grab sampler must not be deployed in soft sediments. Three replicate samples are to be taken and analysed separately. Samples are to be washed on a 63-μm screen, and the living benthic foraminiferal fauna of the >125 μm fraction is to be analysed. Splits are to be picked and counted entirely, and all counted foraminifera from at least one replicate per station have to be stored in micropalaeontological slides. Census data, supplementary laboratory data and micro-slides have to be archived. Advisory recommendations are to sample in autumn, to have a sample size of 50 cm 2 or a tube of 8 cm inner diameter, to use >70% ethanol as a preservative, rose Bengal at a concentration of 2 grams per litre for staining, and a staining time of at least 14 days. The split size should be defined by a target value of 300 specimens, heavy liquid separation should be avoided, and the 63–125 μm fraction or deeper sediment levels may be considered in some environments. We are convinced that the application of this protocol by a large number of scientists is a necessary first step to a general acceptance of benthic foraminifera as a reliable tool in bio-monitoring studies. (J. Schönfeld), ealve@geo.uio.no (E. Alve), emmanuelle.geslin@univ-angers.fr (E. Geslin), frans.jorissen@univ-angers.fr (F. Jorissen), s_korsun@ocean.ru (S. Korsun), silvia.spezzaferri@unifr.ch (S.
... Distance to the shore, water depth and plant communities were noted (e.g. Wilson, 2008). Some studies considered all plants growing on an area of 25 cm 2 , 64 cm 2 or 100 cm 2 (Fujita & Hallock, 1999;Semeniuk, 2000), others took their samples randomly. ...
... Even though the entire inventory and faunal dynamics are not captured by this size fraction (Bauch, 1994;Kandiano & Bauch, 2002;Smart, 2002), this standard has none the less made it possible to create global maps of ice Age ocean surface temperatures where many different groups contributed data (GLAMAP 2000project, Sarnthein et al., 2003. it is conceivable that benthic foraminiferal specialists applied this size fraction following colleagues working with the planktonic foraminifera because they recognized it as being very effective, a possibility that has been mentioned by Parker (1954, p. 457). Census data from samples where the size fractions >63 µm and >150 µm were analysed revealed that, on average, 27% of living specimens in the deep sea and 11% in shallow waters would be captured if only the larger size fraction was examined 2008;Mojtahid et al., 2009) (Appendix A). Only 47% of the deep-sea and 61% of the shallow-water species were recorded in the >150 µm fraction as compared to the >63 µm fraction. ...
Benthic foraminifera have proven to be suitable for environmental monitoring because of their high levels of adaptation, small size and high abundance in Recent sediments and the fossil record. Foraminifera are scarcely used in monitoring studies because a standardization of methods has not been achieved to date. When particular methods were introduced and why they were applied is often hidden in the literature. This paper reviews the development of field and laboratory methods, their constraints and consequences for faunal and data analyses. Multiple and box corers and some grab samplers retrieve reliable surface sediment samples provided the bow wave is minimized as the sampler approaches the sea floor. Most disturbances are created during handling of the unit on deck and subsampling. Ethanol for preservation, rose Bengal as vital stain and a mesh size of 63 μm to wash foraminiferal samples are used extensively. Faunal analyses of a larger size fraction are occasionally necessary. The fractions >125 μm and >150 μm are often preferentially chosen even though this may artificially reduce specimen numbers and faunal diversity. Generally, a much lower level of common practice prevails in sample preparation and faunal analyses than in sampling or laboratory procedures. increasing preference has been given to quantitative methods and the acquisition of independently revisable census data during recent decades.
... A high percentage of the assemblage within the unstable shore zone sands was damaged. Wilson (2006bWilson ( , 2008 quantitatively examined the foraminiferal assemblages in twenty four samples from around Nevis (Fig. 2) and one from Sand Bank Bay, St. Kitts. All were from bare sediment in shore zone water mostly o1 m deep. ...
... Wilson and Ramsook (2007) found the epiphytal fauna in the pristine Long Haul Bay, Nevis ( o1 m), to comprise 44-54% D. rosea. Wilson (2008) concluded that the difference between the epiphytal and sediment percentage abundances of D. rosea reflects shoreward movement of A. gibbosa and A. carinata during storms. This suggests that Cluster 6 was recovered from sites at which the sediment thanatacoenosis has as yet been little impacted by anthropogenically produced organic carbon. ...
Foraminiferal thanatacoenoses were examined around five islands in the Caribbean Sea, which forms a single biogeographic province with respect to nearshore (<3 m water depth) foraminifera, which live primarily on marine vegetation. On death, they become incorporated into the sediment. The assemblage at a site reflects the live assemblage and post mortem affects such as dissolution and transport during storms. Reefal species (Amphistegina gibbosa, Asterigerina carinata) are transported towards shore during storms. Foraminiferal thanatacoenoses were examined in 65 nearshore sediment samples from around five eastern Caribbean islands: St. John (US Virgin Islands), St. Kitts, Nevis, Bequia and Tobago. Cluster and principal components analyses distinguished the following environments (indicator species in parentheses):1.Sediment associated with mangroves (Ammonia sobrina),2.Bays subject to organic matter enrichment (Quinqueloculina poeyana, Triloculina rotunda, T. trigonula),3.Areas subject to moderate sediment flux during storms (Quinqueloculina auberiana, Nodobaculariella mexicana, Peneroplis proteus, Archaias angulatus),4.Locations subject to high sediment flux during storms (Amphistegina gibbosa),5.Sites little stressed by organic matter enrichment or storms (Discorbis rosea).The majority of samples were from sites in the last category. The data from this study could form the nucleus of a catalogue of Caribbean beaches and their environmental influences.Research highlights► Caribbean nearshore foraminifera form one biogeographic province. ► Caribbean foraminiferal thanatacoenoses are environmentally useful. ► Quinqueloculina poeyana indicates sites with organic matter enrichment. ► Archaias angulatus and Amphistegina gibbosa shows sites with high hurricane impact. ► The data presented can form the nucleus of a catalogue of Caribbean beaches.
