Living deep-sea benthic foraminifera from the Cap de Creus Canyon (western Mediterranean): Faunal–geochemical interactions

Contreras-Rosales, Lorena Astrid; Koho, Karoliina A.; Duijnstee, Ivo A.P.; Stigter, Henko de; García, R.; Koning, Erica; Epping, Eric

doi:10.1016/j.dsr.2012.01.010

Cited by 26 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 79 publications

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“…Furthermore, the co-occurrence of U. mediterranea and U. peregrina is in agreement with bathyal faunas described in the Western Mediterranean Sea (Bizon and Bizon 1984;Contreras-Rosales et al 2012;De Rijk et al 2000;Fontanier et al 2008aFontanier et al , 2008bSchmiedl et al 2000). These uvigerinids are generally described as shallow infaunal species able to feed on relatively fresh organic detritus in mesotrophic environments (Contreras-Rosales et al 2012;De Rijk et al 2000;Duros et al 2011Duros et al , 2013Eberwein and Mackensen 2006;Fontanier et al 2002Fontanier et al , 2003Fontanier et al , 2006Fontanier et al , 2008bKoho et al 2007Koho et al , 2008Schmiedl et al 2000). Uvigerina peregrina can behave as an opportunistic taxon feeding on freshly exported phytodetritus in canyon and slope environments, whereas U. mediterranea is a reactive species able to grow and reproduce when food is available in the surface sediment (Duros et al , 2013Fontanier et al 2003).…”

Section: Using Caution With Foraminifera In Biomonitoring Studiessupporting

confidence: 87%

“…Low-diversity foraminiferal faunas are recorded in the deeper basin, compared to more diverse communities from bathyal stations. Such an ecological trend was previously documented in slope and canyon environments from the Western Mediterranean Sea (Contreras-Rosales et al 2012;Fontanier et al 2008b). Along this margin, this trend is likely related to the scarcity of food at varying depths, which is fairly well illustrated by a decrease of organic carbon content in surface sediments (Fig.…”

Section: Using Caution With Foraminifera In Biomonitoring Studiessupporting

confidence: 75%

“…It does not follow a conventional ecological survey based on foraminiferal baselines. Fortunately, many works on living foraminiferal faunas were performed in the Gulf of Lions and in the Ligurian Sea before our present study (Bizon and Bizon 1984;Contreras-Rosales et al 2012;De Rijk et al 2000;Fontanier et al 2008aFontanier et al , 2008bGoineau et al 2011Goineau et al , 2012Schmiedl et al 2000). They deal with various environmental settings (shelf, open-slope, active and passive canyons), and for this reason, provide useful information concerning what we might expect in terms of natural foraminiferal abundance and distribution in our study area.…”

Section: Using Caution With Foraminifera In Biomonitoring Studiesmentioning

confidence: 69%

“…The presence of epilithic species and suspension feeders (e.g., H. bradyi, C. mamilla, A. tubulata, Ammobaculites agglutinans (d'Orbigny, 1846) and Lagenammina spp.) suggests that bottom currents sweep across canyon and deep basin floors (Contreras-Rosales et al 2012;Fontanier et al 2008bFontanier et al , 2013Nigam et al 2004;Schönfeld 2002). Such currents, when channeled by the local bathymetry, may contribute to the dispersal of bauxite residues from the upper canyons to the lower margin.…”

Section: Using Caution With Foraminifera In Biomonitoring Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Deep-sea benthic foraminifera in an area around the Cassidaigne Canyon (NW Mediterranean) affected by bauxite discharges

et al. 2014

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During an environmental survey, living (stained) benthic foraminiferal faunas were investigated at 14 stations within the Cassidaigne Canyon (NW Mediterranean Sea) and the surrounding area. For many decades, industrial bauxite residues (namely red mud) have drained into this canyon via a submarine pipe. Stations investigated in this paper are located between water depths of 288 and 2,432 m from the shelf break to the deeper basin and at a distance ranging between~5 and 70 km from the pipe outlet. At almost every site, surface sediment is characterized by red mud deposits and their geochemical imprints. Our ecological observations show that foraminiferal standing stocks and simple diversity (S) decrease across the margin in response to the decreasing food input to the seafloor with increasing water depth. The foraminiferal composition echoes the overall mesooligotrophic patterns of our study area. The contribution of opportunistic and stress-tolerant species, commonly identified as recolonizers of freshly disturbed areas, is minor at the 14 stations. This clearly shows that red mud dispersal in the Cassidaigne Canyon and the surrounding area has no major ecological impact on foraminiferal diversity.

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Section: Using Caution With Foraminifera In Biomonitoring Studiessupporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Using Caution With Foraminifera In Biomonitoring Studiessupporting

confidence: 75%

Section: Using Caution With Foraminifera In Biomonitoring Studiesmentioning

confidence: 69%

Section: Using Caution With Foraminifera In Biomonitoring Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Deep-sea benthic foraminifera in an area around the Cassidaigne Canyon (NW Mediterranean) affected by bauxite discharges

et al. 2014

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“…Pigments have been generally used as indicators of rapidly available food for benthic foraminifera (e.g. Contreras-Rosales et al, 2012;Phipps et al, 2012). Chl-a concentrations in seawater are commonly used as a measure of the standing stocks of primary producers while phaeopigments are interpreted as a chlorophyll degradation product coming from copepod pellets in areas where phytodetritic consumption is important (Boon et al, 1998).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lateral and vertical distributions of living benthic foraminifera off the Douro River (western Iberian margin): Impact of the organic matter quality

Dessandier

Bonnin

Kim

et al. 2015

Marine Micropaleontology

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Impact of organic matter source and quality on living benthic foraminiferal distribution on a river‐dominated continental margin: A study of the Portuguese margin

et al. 2016

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Living (rose Bengal stained) benthic foraminifera were investigated on surface sediments from 23 stations from the river-dominated northwestern Portuguese margin. Samples were collected in March 2011, following the period of the maximum rainfall over the Iberian Peninsula, between 20 and 2000 m water depth along five cross-margin transects. Four of them are located off the Douro, Mondego, Tagus, and Sado Rivers and one off the Estremadura coast. The major objectives of this study are (1) to assess the impact of organic matter of various origin and quality on the benthic foraminifera and (2) to investigate the spatial differences of faunal distribution from coastal waters to the deep sea under river influences. To do this, sedimentological and biogeochemical characteristics of the sediments were identified by measuring grain size, oxygen penetration depth, total organic carbon (TOC) content, stable carbon isotopic composition of TOC (δ 13 C TOC ) and concentration of pigments and amino acids. Based on the principal component and cluster analyses of the environmental data, three major geographical groups are identified: (1) deep stations, (2) coastal and middle slope stations, and (3) shelf stations under river influence. At the deepest stations, species are associated with high organic matter (OM) quantity but low OM quality, where Uvigerina mediterranea, Hoeglundina elegans, and agglutinated species such as Reophax scorpiurus or Bigenerina nodosaria are dominant. All stations off the Sado River, which is the most affected area by the anthropogenic influence, are also characterized by high quantity but low quality of OM with the minimum faunal density and diversity within the study area. Middle slope stations are associated with low OM content and coarse sediments (Q 50 ) with the predominance of N. scaphum. Shallow shelf stations close to the Douro and Tagus River mouths show a dominance of taxa (e.g., Ammonia beccarii, Bulimina aculeata, Eggerelloides scaber, Nonion scaphum, Cancris auriculus, and Quinqueloculina seminula) adapted to environments characterized by high OM quality (high fresh chlorophyll (Chl a/Phaeo)) and available amino acids (enzymatically hydrolyzable amino acid (EHAA)/total enzymatically hydrolyzable amino acid (THAA)). The Biotic and Environmental linking analysis suggests that the benthic foraminiferal distribution is mostly controlled by three environmental parameters, i.e., TOC (quantity), EHAA/THAA (quality), and δ 13 C TOC (source). Hence, this study clearly highlights that the quantitative and qualitative inputs of OM and its source are the most important factors controlling the living benthic foraminiferal distribution with clear influences between the different rivers. This study also suggests a good tolerance of several species for river discharges where the OM quality is high.

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Living deep-sea benthic foraminifera from the Cap de Creus Canyon (western Mediterranean): Faunal–geochemical interactions

Cited by 26 publications

References 79 publications

Deep-sea benthic foraminifera in an area around the Cassidaigne Canyon (NW Mediterranean) affected by bauxite discharges

Deep-sea benthic foraminifera in an area around the Cassidaigne Canyon (NW Mediterranean) affected by bauxite discharges

Lateral and vertical distributions of living benthic foraminifera off the Douro River (western Iberian margin): Impact of the organic matter quality

Impact of organic matter source and quality on living benthic foraminiferal distribution on a river‐dominated continental margin: A study of the Portuguese margin

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